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Difficulty: EasyTransatlantic Trade and Mercantilism

Read the following excerpt from the English Navigation Act of 1660:

'No goods or commodities whatsoever shall be imported into or exported out of any lands, islands, plantations or territories to his Majesty belonging... in Asia, Africa, or America, in any other ship or ships... but such as do truly and without fraud belong only to the people of England...'

The regulations described in the excerpt most directly reflect which of the following economic concepts or policies?

  1. A
    Laissez-faire capitalism, which sought to promote free trade and economic independence for colonial merchants.
  2. Mercantilism, which sought to strengthen the economy of the mother country by controlling colonial trade.Answer
  3. C
    A specialized regional treaty, which sought to protect New England's monopoly on tobacco exports to Europe.
  4. D
    A labor regulation, which sought to transition the southern colonies from indentured servitude to chattel slavery.

Answer

Mercantilism, which sought to strengthen the economy of the mother country by controlling colonial trade.
The Navigation Acts were key components of the British mercantilist system, which was designed to restrict colonial trade to English and colonial vessels to ensure that the mother country reaped the economic benefits of its colonies.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the main focus of the provided historical text.
The excerpt restricts colonial import and export activities to English or colonial-owned ships.
Understanding the core regulation is necessary to classify the economic policy.
2
Match the regulation to colonial-era economic policies.
Controlling colonial trade to enrich the mother country is the definition of mercantilism.
This connects the specific shipping restriction to the broader imperial economic theory.

Key Concept

Mercantilism and the Navigation Acts
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Transatlantic Trade and Mercantilism

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