The Industrial Revolution made countries powerful in the 1900's.  In many respects, the Industrial Revolution was a separator between powerful states and ones that would woefully lag behind.  Geography and political stability were important factors in whether a country could industrialize or not.  Countries that saw an increase in manufacturing because of the utilization of machines were advantaged in a number of ways.  First, it was easier to mass produce weapons that were on the cutting edge of battlefield technology.  Second, the increase in wealth, and by extension, tax revenues allowed industrialized nations to invest in their defense industries.  A third reason that industrialization made nations powerful is because it helped them to expand their empires.  Industrialized nations looked to other lands to acquire natural resources and markets.  These lands provided both economic and military benefits to those nations.