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Navigation Acts

Introduction

Britain was considered as one of the largest trading nations towards the middle of the eighteenth century. It had a huge territory and several colonies in Africa, Asia and even America. Many of its products were manufactured in these colonies, which had a major role in the flourishing of the British trade system. The manufacturers of Britain were involved in the export of a variety of hardware and textiles. Bristol merchants and Rich London imported tropical goods and Baltic timber and grain were dealt by the provincial merchants. A series of laws restricting the usage of foreign shipping for the purpose of trade between Britain and its colonies was known as the Navigation Acts. These acts initiated in 1651. Their main objective was to force the development of the colonies in to the lines which would eventually favor England. This meant that direct trade with other countries would be stopped.

These other countries included France, Netherlands as well as various other European countries. The original ordinance came in 1651 and it was amended at the Restoration by the Acts of 1660 as well as 1663. These Acts developed the grounds almost 200 years for the overseas trade of Britain. The Acts of Navigation and Trade were seriously followed, except for the Molasses Act of 1733. Since, no such measures of enforcement were effective until then, it lead to widespread smuggling. This happened until the 1750s. The Sugar Act of 1764 was considered to be a strict and irritating implementation of the policies for the merchants who operated in the colonies of America. This was taken as taken so seriously that it led to the American Revolution. The American colonies felt all the economic burden of the Navigation Acts. This has been the major issue for debate since the 18th Century.

Discussion

In the history, it has been argued by various philosophers that the most important Navigation Acts were enacted in 1650, 1660, 1663, 1673 and 1696. These expressed the economic doctrine of mercantilism.

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Background of Navigation Acts 1951

This was passed in the month of October in 1651. The parliament of Commonwealth of England, which was headed by Oliver Cromwell, passed this Act. He managed to reinforce one of the long standing Government principles which highlighted that the English vessels would be the only one to conduct the English trade. The Act was actually known to be a response to the diplomatic mission of England's failure to The Hague, in which they were looking forward to the merging of the Republic of Seven United Netherlands and the Commonwealth. Since, the Dutch and the English could not establish union of politics or even achieve an agreement of trade; foreign ships were banned to transport goods to England or any of its colonies from outside of Europe. The vessels of the 3rd party countries were also restricted to transport the goods from any random country to England or in Europe. The regulations and policies strictly focused on the Dutch ...