The British Overseas Trade - Case Study Example

THE INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN OVERSEAS TRADE, SLAVERY, WAR, AND TAXATION IN THE 18TH CENTURY BRITAIN Introduction This paper explores how the British overseas trade, slavery, war, and taxation were linked together during the eighteenth century. In determining the interrelationship of the four, it is important to mention that Britain engaged in a long struggle with France for imperial power and trade supremacy in the period between 1688 and 1815. Britain’s supremacy as a world power was heightened by 1815, in which its economic and imperial power became unrivalled even that of France’s.1 It is important to mention that Britain was a military state as well as a fiscal state in the long eighteenth century. The availability of revenue allowed for Britain to maintain naval dockyards and barracks, pay wages, and supply food and munitions, through Effective action by armies and fleets.2 The interconnectedness of overseas trade, slavery, war, and taxation shall be addressed by this paper. It is important to note however, that British colonialism had an influential role in the linkage among the four factors. The Linkage between British Overseas Trade, Slavery, War, and Taxation During the Eighteenth-Century Britain Alongside a renewed pressure with the unprecedented demands of war with revolutionary and Napoleonic France between 1793 and 1815 was the fiscal-military state of the eighteenth-century Britain, in which taxation reached 20 percent of the national income of England.3 Taxes were normally between 8 and 10 percent throughout the 18th century. Along with the growing influence of Britain was a desire to protect strategic goods, encourage colonial trade or preserve domestic employment from foreign competition, which became issues of national, security and imperial preference. It was likewise important for Britain to establish its political life and to provide links between civil society and the state, which became the subject of the complex process of brokerage with trade interests.4 However, success in Britain’s point of view did not only mean the availability of and increased flow of revenue, but warfare as well, whereby large amounts were spent in a short period of time which far exceeded income. It may be inferred that Britain’s goal to pursue warfare specifically with its long-term rival France and the corresponding pursuit to sustain taxation were towards the attainment of a more heightened objective, which was colonialism.5 Such trail towards colonialism is seen in Britain’s concentration on taxing policies witnessed in the fiscal system becoming more dependent on excise duties, with tariffs and stamp of wealth declining an importance.6 Land tax was considered the most important direct tax in this period, which was seen to rise in line with rents, profits, and salaries.7 The restoration of the land tax to the real level of the 1690s was seen to solve all fiscal problems as argued by a radical pressure group in 1860, the Financial Reform Association. A range of assessed taxes supplemented the land, aiming to tap the income of the rich by taxing signs of conspicuous wealth and display such as male servants, carriages, and pleasure horses. However, an increasing reliance on indirect taxes ensued when land and assessed taxes declined and these indirect taxes took the form of excise duties on a limited range of goods as well as duties on exports and imports. 8 At the time Britain relied on indirect taxes, there was an expansion of a more effective ‘handle’ on the economy for trade. Likewise, a means of extracting revenue from expanding sectors of the economy was offered through imports of raw materials such as cotton. This scenario shows the interconnectivity between trade and taxation, complementing one with the other in sustaining a mercantile economy. Warfare contributed to the rising power of Britain towards acquiring more territories for its expansion and objectives of colonialism. Trade and taxing activities were interrelated during the eighteenth-century Britain, whereby its success rested on the system of collection and assessment in the localities, as well as expression of local and trade interests in parliament.9 Likewise, it is necessary to mention that the trade and taxation domains in the country at this time coincided with the development of a fiscal-military state focused on warfare, which altered relations between central and local government. The colonial pursuits of Britain can be seen in the concern of the central government with war and imperialism than with the intricacies of domestic government, and a corresponding pursuit to secure the necessary resources for the army and navy.10 It is noteworthy to mention that in line with Britain’s objective to improve its economy through trade and taxation, the British state developed a distinctive pattern of taxation. The crown depended on grants from parliament by bequeathing its ability to live on its own resources, of which the parliament was way too jealous of its power and independence.11 The emerging capitalism that soon replaced the mercantile system saw the emergence of the bourgeois class which sustained the trade relations of Britain with other territories. This is exemplified by the fact that government long term borrowing was financed manually by the mercantile bourgeoisies. This allowed for the continuation of the operation of the national debt, along with the bonds of overseas trading joint, stock companies, as well as the development of the stock exchange market.12 British trade had peculiar credit needs, especially the ones in Western Africa, in which acquisition of African slave labor was an emphasis, as well as the procurement of supplies from Europe and the transportation and marketing of plantation produce in the region.13 A general framework outlining the contribution of the Atlantic slave economy and the development of credit institutions in England were provided by these scenarios. The expansion of British trade beyond Europe can be considered a factor that made credit an important requirement in British overseas trade in the 17th and 18th centuries. A large capital investment in trade was called for due to the increased distance involved, which spelled remittance for the sale of goods outside Europe, allowing to reach the merchant exporters in Britain beyond the personal resources of the traders.14 This situation spelled more than mere trade relations, but also Britain’s pursuit to establish trade influence in the region as part of its colonial policies. The British African trade had extraordinary credit needs in the 18th century which pointed to the large amount of credit that the slave traders had to extend to the slave employers. This was illustrated as tantamount to the purchase of modern capital goods by 20th century producers.15 During the 18th century, the British slave exporters were forced to grant large credits to the employers of slave labor. The reliance on war of the British government during the 18th century colonial system was equivalent to how surely plantation profits were generated. Any calculation of the colonial surplus deducted a significant part of the expenses of war, the value of colonial markets, and sources of supply.16 Over and against these appropriators were the slaves, situated with the economic system, existing with the traders, manufacturers, and planters who served as influential and weighty members of the economic community. The prevailing social relations along with exchanges with the plantations aided the exploiting classes to propel the economy forward, in which slave-produced surpluses were mobilized while profits were realised in the new branches of production.17 It must be noted that these slave-produced surpluses were mobilized in its ultimate purpose through colonization. During the 18th century, British merchants were interested in boosting their outputs and hence supplied equipment to the planters. Those involved in the plantation trade were concerned with organizing and improving transport, cultivation, and processing,18 all involved in the early process of establishing the grounds for capitalism. Thus, overseas trade, slavery, war, and taxation were interrelated in this way. Conclusion The linkage of the British overseas trade, slavery, war, and taxation during the eighteenth century was one towards propelling a colonial system of economy, in the sustenance of the mercantile system that was soon replaced by the capitalist system of production. Britain’s engagement with France on war spelled economic and military expansion, which was an extension of its colonial motives. Although Britain was focused on obtaining income through taxes, the availability of and increased flow of revenue did not alone constitute success, but warfare as well. This paper posits that colonialism was Britain’s single pursuit for the linkage between overseas trade, taxation, slavery, and warfare. Slaves were made to produce for overseas trade; taxation was implemented to sustain the ailing economy; and warfare was performed to gain influence and obtain territories for annexation, all leading to the nourishment of the colonial system. Bibliography Blackburn, Robin. The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Creole. Verso, 1997. p. 326-343; 558-571. Dauton, Martin. Trusting Leviathan: the Politics of Taxation in Britain. Cambridge University Press, 2007, p. 1-43. Hurst, Gerald B. British Imperialism in the Eighteenth Century. Constable, 1908, p. 1-32. Inikori, J. E. Africans and the Industrial Revolution in England. Cambridge University Press, 2002. p. 314-361. Knowles, LCA. The Economic Development of the British Overseas Empire. Routledge, 2004, p. 2-12. Parkinson, Northcote C. The Trade Winds: A Study of British Overseas Trade during the French Wars, 1793-1815. Routledge, 2006, p. 157-193. Read More