What parts of the world experienced the Industrial Revolution first?

The Industrial Revolution was a 'societal revolution' in which a number of countries changed from being farming and agriculture-based into manufacturing and industry-based societies. This took place in two waves, the First Industrial Revolution in the 1700s and the Second Industrial Revolution which occurred toward the end of the 1800s moving into the 1900s. According to historians, the First Industrial Revolution started in Great Britain which was one of the most dominate societies of the time.
From the mid-1700's through the mid-1800s Great Britain went through a great deal of economic development which changed not only that country's society but moved on to neighboring countries and throughout the world at large. Some events at the center of the Industrial Revolution were the use of steel and iron in machine construction; this made the machines more durable, effective, and capable of mass producing goods. In addition, the use of new energy sources such as coal, electricity, and steam to power these machines emerged to make the machines far more efficient. The evolution of efficient machinery allowed English society to move from traditionally home-based goods that were produced at very slow rates to goods being produced in factories at much faster speeds than before. Thus, factories first began appearing in Great Britain and no one doubts that the development of these factories were at the advent of the Industrial Revolution.

The industrial revolution began in England in the eighteenth century, in the textile industry. Whereas before the revolution, wool or other raw material had been sent out to individuals or families in cottages to be spun or hand loomed into cloth, during the industrial revolution this process was completely changed. Factories developed and used large, steam-powered equipment, such as the power loom that could produce material much more quickly than by hand. Rather than disperse raw materials to cottagers who worked in their home, workers were now required to come to work in large factories. Whereas at home, workers could fit their work around other responsibilities, regularized work schedules, for as much as sixteen hours a day, increased productivity and profits for the owners, but exhausted workers, leading to unrest until some of the early problems were worked out through labor laws.
The Industrial Revolution expanded urban populations and decreased the number of people in rural villages. It led to lower prices for clothing and other items that could be produced more rapidly than ever by machines, and thus to higher standards of living. After the Industrial Revolution had taken off in England, contributing to the country becoming the premier world power in the nineteenth century, it spread to Germany and the United States, and then to France, Italy, Holland, Belgium, and Japan.