Navigation Acts

Examples of Navigation Acts in the following topics:

• Enforcing the Navigation Acts

  • The English Navigation Acts, which were passed in the 17th and 18th centuries, restricted foreign trade by England's colonies.
  • The Navigation Act was first passed in October of 1651 by Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell.
  • On the whole, the Navigation Acts were more or less obeyed by colonists, despite their dissatisfaction, until the Molasses and Sugar Acts.
  • Oliver Cromwell led Parliament in passing the first Navigation Act  in 1651.
  • Describe the central stipulations of the Navigation Acts and the Acts' effects on the political and economic situation in the colonies

• Navigation Acts

  • A series of Acts, known as the English Navigation Acts, restricted foreign shipment for trade between Great Britain and its colonies.
  • The English Navigation Acts were a series of laws that restricted use of foreign shipping for trade between England and its colonies.
  • The Navigation Acts enriched Britain, but caused resentment in the colonies and contributed to the American Revolution.
  • The Navigation Acts required all of a colony's imports to be either bought from England or resold by English merchants in England, no matter what price could be obtained elsewhere.
  • Navigation Acts lead to conflict between the British and the Dutch

• The Mercantalist System

  • Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the Parliament of England passed the Navigation Acts to increase the profit England derived from its colonies.
  • Among the provisions, the Acts required that any colonial imports or exports travel only on ships registered in England.
  • The Navigation Acts expelled foreign merchants from England's domestic trade.
  • Many colonists resented the Navigation Acts because they increased regulation and reduced their opportunities for profit, while England profited from colonial work.

• Trade and Economy

  • The government had to fight smuggling, especially by American merchants, some of whose activities (which included direct trade with the French, Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese) were classified as such by the Navigation Acts.

• Colonies in Crisis

  • Andros, commissioned governor of New England in 1686, had earned the enmity of the local populace by enforcing the restrictive Navigation Acts, denying the validity of existing land titles, restricting town meetings, and appointing unpopular regular officers to lead colonial militia, among other actions that were part of an attempt to bring the colonies under the closer control of the crown.

• The Glorious Revolution in America

  • He had revoked the Massachusetts Bay Colony charter in 1684 after its Puritan rulers refused to act on his demands to streamline the administration of the small colonies and bring them more closely under the crown's control.
  • He also enforced the Navigation Acts, laws that restricted New England trade.
  • James also attempted to place sympathizers in Parliament who would repeal the Test Act, which required a strict Anglican religious test for many civil offices.

• The Confederation's Problems

  • Adams stated that it was necessary either for the States to confer the power of passing navigation laws to Congress, or for the States themselves to pass retaliatory acts against Great Britain.
  • Congress had already failed to attain power over navigation laws.
  • Meanwhile, each State acted individually against Great Britain to little effect.

• From Annapolis to Philadelphia

  • They were charged with dealing with issues of commerce, fishing, and navigation in the waters of the Potomac and Pocomoke Rivers and the Chesapeake Bay.
  • It also provided for reciprocal fishing rights, dividing the costs of constructing navigation aids, and cooperation on defense and cases of piracy.
  • Instead, he introduced a proposal in the Virginia General Assembly to act on the suggestion of the Compact commissioners for further debate of interstate issues.

• The Defense Buildup and the "Evil Empire"

  • Reagan labeled the act a "massacre" and responded to the incident by suspending all Soviet passenger air service to the United States; he also dropped several agreements being negotiated with the Soviets, wounding them financially.
  • As a result of the shootdown—the cause of KAL 007's going astray thought to be inadequacies related to its navigational system—Reagan announced on September 16, 1983 that the Global Positioning System would be made available for civilian use, free of charge, to avert similar navigational errors in future.
  • However, in a break from the Carter policy of arming Taiwan under the Taiwan Relations Act, Reagan agreed with the communist government in China to reduce the sale of arms to Taiwan.

• Portugal and West Africa

  • In 1415, Ceuta was conquered by the Portuguese aiming to control navigation of the African coast.
  • Young prince Henry the Navigator was there and became aware of profit possibilities in the Trans-Saharan trade routes .
  • These charts revolutionized navigation, allowing to calculate latitude.
  • Henry the Navigator in 15th century triptych of St.
  • The introduction of the caravel allowed Portuguese mariners to travel and navigate on the open Atlantic Ocean.