Crop rotation was a key element of the British Agricultural Revolution primarily because it aimed to

• A. To restore soil fertility and reduce pests
• B. To increase farm rents
• C. To eliminate the need for irrigation
• D. To hasten harvest times

Answer: (A)

The main idea is to keep soil productive by rotating crops to replenish nutrients and disrupt pests. In the British Agricultural Revolution, rotating crops—especially including legumes like clover—replenished soil nitrogen through natural fixation and reduced nutrient depletion, so fields stayed fertile without waiting for long fallow periods. This system also breaks pest and disease cycles by not exposing the same crop to the same pests year after year, lowering losses. Over time, this approach supported more consistent, higher yields and allowed for integrating livestock, which added manure back into the fields and further boosted fertility. The other options miss the point because increasing rents, eliminating irrigation, or simply hastening harvests weren’t the primary aim of crop rotation; restoring soil health and reducing pests were the central goals.