Course:History 344 Nasty Families/Professions/Trade
English Trade
England, being an island, relied heavily on overseas shipping for both its sustainability and wealth.[1] During the early modern period, a strong emphasis was placed on overseas market exchange, giving rise to an increasingly important English shipping industry. The volume of English trade grew significantly during the Stuart age, with imports and exports increasing by 300 per cent from 1613 to 1700.[2] Many more merchant ships were built as well, with the result that "the tonnage of English merchant ships in 1688 was double that in 1666." [3] During the beginning of the 17th century, England became strongly focused on trade with foreign economies, especially with that of the Low Countries.[4] The growth and wealth of London was largely due to the city's well established trade with the Low Countries.[5] It is also evident that ports actively engaging in inter-continental trade became far more prosperous than those that only focused on domestic trade. Shipping was also fundamental in sustaining the material culture of Britain. Specialty items, such as rare metals, spices, wines, oil and other sub-tropical luxuries, could only be acquired through trade with the continent.[6] Therefore, when the economy was strong, the shipping industry became extremely profitable as the English population enjoyed the finer luxuries of life. When the economy was in a recession, the shipping industry remained secure, as daily necessities were still required to be imported from the continent. The only detriment to the shipping business was war. During war with Spain, many smaller ports suffered sharply from the loss of continental trade.[7] This encouraged shipping to become more centered around London where larger ports proved less affected by international war. [8] During wartime, many merchantmen were impressed into the Royal Navy.[9] The risk of impressment would have been a major negative aspect of the lives of merchant sailors. The shipping industry established in large ports provided a unique opportunity for the upper class, as it was extremely profitable during times of peace, yet remained relatively secure during times of war.
BN: Lots of expansion possible. This is a bit topic.
- ↑ David Harris Sacks and Michael Lynch, "Ports 1540-1700," in The Cambridge Urban History of Britain: Volume II 1540-1840, ed. Peter Clark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), 377.
- ↑ Robert K. Merton, "Sicence and the Economy of Seventeenth Century England," Science & Society 3, no. 1 (Winter, 1939), 7.
- ↑ Merton, 8.
- ↑ Sacks and Lynch, 378.
- ↑ Sacks and Lynch, 391.
- ↑ Sacks and Lynch, 392-393.
- ↑ Sacks and Lynch, 397.
- ↑ Sacks and Lynch, 397.
- ↑ M. Oppenheim, "The Royal Navy Under Charles I," The English Historical Review 9, no. 33 (Jan. 1894), 92.