The Navigation Acts, 1651-1663
In 1651, the English Parliament
passed the first of several Navigation Acts
to support mercantilism. By these laws:
(1) Shipments from Europe to English
colonies had to go through England first.
(2) Any imports to England from the
colonies had to come in shops built and
owned by British subjects. (2) The
colonies could sell key products, such as
tobacco and sugar, only to England.
The Navigation Acts benefitted the colonist in many ways, however, they also
restricted the colonist of their economic freedoms. One of the benefits the Acts provided
was that colonial shipbuilding expanded over the years, turning the New England colonies
into one of the top shipbuilding regions of the world. This proved to be a boon for the
colonists since under the Acts, goods could only be transported in English ships.
Furthermore, the New England shipping industry depended on the Acts to keep them
economically protected and in business. As for merchants, they too benefited. The
Navigation Acts proved to be not only profitable for the mother country of England but
for the colonists as well by forcing all foreign traders from Africa, Europe, or Asia to ship
their good through only English owned ports.
Everything was not sunshine and roses for the colonists though. Colonial goods
were restricted and controlled by the mother country. Raw goods such as cotton, indigo,
and tobacco could be sold only to England or to another English colony. This forced
colonial farmers and merchants to sell their goods at very low prices set by the
government of England. The Acts also limited colonists to purchasing goods only from
Britain, leaving other countries with limited trade to New England, creating a black market
and steep prices for smuggled goods. The Acts created a problem for English
manufacturers who produced goods that the British didn’t want to buy, the Acts
restricted the colonists’ rights to sell to foreign ports.
Smuggling still persisted in the colonies. In response, the British government
passed high tariffs on imported goods from foreign nations so that the colonists would be
forced to buy British made goods.
The Navigation Acts, 1651-1663
Advantages
Disadvantages