StartAid

anca007   Praque 

Posted at 8:50am on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008

Although the Navigation Act made no distinction between nations, it was understood to be aimed primarily at the Dutch. It stipulated that goods could be imported into territories of the English Commonwealth only by English ships, or by ships of the country originally producing the goods being carried. This was intended to cripple the freight trade, upon which Dutch commerce depended. Dutch ships would only be able to import the produce of Holland (primarily butter and cheese) into England and her colonies. The Dutch fishing industry was also affected because the Act stipulated that salt-fish and fish-oil could only be imported or exported from Commonwealth territories in English vessels.
The 1651 Act banned foreign ships from transporting goods from outside Europe to England or its colonies and banned third party countries' ships from transporting goods from a country elsewhere in Europe to England. These rules specifically targeted the Dutch who controlled a large section of Europe's... read more »