Commonwealth merchant ensigns
English Red Ensign 1620
Scottish Red Ensign
Flag of Leinster
New England combo flag
New England

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays: Second Series (1844).
A description and history of economy and trade of the British Commonwealth from mercantilism to free trade and capitalism.


For whosoever commands the sea commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself. (Sir Walter Raleigh, "A Discourse of the Invention of Ships, Anchors, Compass, &c.", The Works of Sir Walter Ralegh, Kt. (1829, reprinted 1965), vol. 8, p. 325.)
Mercantilism was the basic and national economic policy of the British Commonwealth also imposed on its colonies from the 1660s to the 18th centuries until the emerge of free trade as an alternative system.. Mercantilism meant that the government and merchants based in England became partners with the goal of increasing political power and private wealth, to the exclusion of other empires and even merchants based in its own colonies.


Navigation Acts

The Navigation Acts were a series of Commonwealth laws that restricted colonial trade to the Home countries[1]. They were first enacted in 1651 and throughout that time until 1663, and were repealed in 1849. They reflected the policy of mercantilism, which sought to keep all the benefits of trade inside the territories of the Commonwealth, and to minimize the loss of gold and silver to foreigners.

They prohibited the colonies from trading directly with the Netherlands (until 1683 see Anglo-Dutch Concord), Spain, France, and their colonies. The original ordinance of 1651 was renewed by the Acts of 1660, 1663, 1670, and 1673, with subsequent minor amendments.

Products such as tobacco, cotton, rice, tea and sugar were listed in the Navigation Acts to be shipped from the colonies only to Home countries or other English colonies.

The Acts formed the basis for English overseas trade for nearly 200 years. Additionally the Acts restricted the employment of non-English sailors to a quarter of the crew on returning East India Company ships.

Free trade and Capitalism

Under a system of perfectly free commerce, each country naturally devotes its capital and labour to such employments as are most beneficial to each. (...) by increasing the general mass of productions, it diffuses general benefit, and binds together, by one common tie of interest and intercourse, the universal society of nations throughout the civilized world. (Chapter VII, On Foreign Trade of The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (1821) (Third Edition) by David Ricardo)

The Inclosure Act of 1770 is historically considered one of the major land reforms of the Tory-Country Coalition. This Act enclosed open fields and common land, creating legal property rights to land that was previously considered common. It facilitated the purchase and improvement of agricultural land, but impoverished many farming communities. Its most adverse effect were felt in Ireland were the few remain areas with common land, mainly Atlantic shore, were enclosed and led from local peasants to acts of protests and violence.

The Inclosure Act of 1770 (Act for the better Cultivation, Improvement, and Regulation of the Common Arable Fields, Wastes, and Commons of Pasture in this Commonwealth) provided for a standard legal procedures that enabled enclosure of land, at the same time removing the right of commoners' access. It called for the appointment of Inclosure Commissioners who could enclose land without submitting a request to Parliament and deposit tithes and deeds in the land registries, thereby removing private members inclosure acts.


Organization of Trade and Plantations

Between 1650 and 1662 there was intricate and complicated system of committees and councils created and reporting to the Council of State or Parliament. In most cases these bodies were of short existence. Most trade and colonial affairs were treated by the Council that referred them committees and subcommittees that reported back to the Council. Control was exercised by no single or continuous organ and according to no clearly defined or consistent plan.

The merchants of London and other important port cities of the Commonwealth were dissatisfied with the way the plantations were managed and desired a reorganization which should bring about order, improve administration, economize expenditure, elevate justice, and effect speedily and fairly a settlement of colonial disputes and organize trade. They presented several proposals to the Protector and Council. Most of these envisioned a separate and permanent council o councils to busy themselves with all plantation and trade affairs.

In 1662 the Council of State statute the creation of two new permanent bodies: Council for Foreign Plantations and Council of Trade. Each would have a permanent President and Secretary and be integrated by merchants and seamen, each would have 6 to 12 members named by the Council of State. They would also meet as a Joint Committee, three members from each Council, to deal jointly Trade and Plantation affairs. Four prominent London merchants Martin Noell, Thomas Povey, Sir Nicholas Crispe and Sir Andrew Riccard took seats in the Council of Trade.

On trade the main tasks were to implement freedom of trade within the nations England, Scotland and later Ireland) that made up the Commonwealth, implement instructions and report on the Navigation Acts, consider coinage, trade with America and West Indies, revision of chartered companies and recommendation of new ones, encourage fishing, etc.

On Plantation, a recall and revision of all charters, consider petitions from the plantations, solve controversy between the colonies, propose measures to improve administration of the colonies, encourage settlements, etc.

Industrial Revolution

Barrow Steelworks

Steelworks at Barrow-in-Furnes

The Industrial Revolution, began in Britain between 1760 and 1830. This rapid British industrialization started with mechanized spinning in the 1780s, with high rates of growth in steam power and iron production occurring after 1800. Mechanized textile production spread from Britain to continental Europe and America in the early 19th century, with important centres of textiles, iron and coal emerging in Netherlands, Flanders and the Ruhr valley and later in France.

Many of the technological innovations were British or French. The development of trade and the rise of business were major causes of the Industrial Revolution. By the mid-18th century Britain controlled a global trading empire with colonies in North America and Africa, and with some political influence on the Indian subcontinent, through the activities of the East India Company.

The Industrial Revolution marks a major turning point in history; almost every aspect of daily life was influenced in some way. In particular, average income and population began to exhibit unprecedented sustained growth. The major impact of the Industrial Revolution was that the standard of living for the general population began to increase consistently for the first time in history.

Chartered companies

Ensigns chartered companies
British East India Company flag
East India Company
Flag of the British East India Company (1707)
East India Company
1670 to date
Hudsons Bay Company Flag (CtG)
Hudson's Bay Company
1670 to date
Company of Adventurers Trading to Africa (CtG)
Company of Adventurers
Trading to Africa
1670 to date

The English and Commonwealth chartered companies were associations formed by investors or shareholders for the purpose of trade, exploration, and colonization. They became after 1660 one of the key economic agents in foreign trade rivaling with the Dutch and French chartered companies in their grab for resources, trade and exploration. The chartered companies also provided a cheap and non committal control of colonial territories in Asia and Africa. Companies also became major players in proxy wars, like the Carnatic Wars, between Britain and France in the overseas territories without a formal declaration of war has these conflicts were seeing as commercial wars between rival companies.

However, the golden age of chartered companies came to an end, save for the Hudson Bay Company, in the late 17th century when most charters and monopolies were repealed and free trade became the established practice.

A major exception was the East India Company were various Acts of the Commonwealth Parliament imposed a series of administrative and economic reforms. These acts clearly established Parliament's sovereignty and ultimate control over the company until finally the British Commonwealth government disestablished the Company and assumed the control of the Indian territories of the EIC.

  • Company of Merchant Adventurers of London 1407
  • Company of Merchant Adventurers to New Lands 1553
  • Muscovy Company 1555
  • Spanish Company 1577
  • Eastland Company 1579
  • Turkey Company 1581
  • Morocco Company (or Barbary Company) 1588
  • East India Company (EIC) 1600
  • New River Company 1604
  • Levant Company 1605
  • French Company 1609
  • London and Bristol Company 1610
  • Somers Isles Company 1616
  • Guinea Company 1618
  • Massachusetts Bay Company 1629
  • Providence Island Company 1629
  • Courteen association 1653-1657 (merged to the EIC)
  • Leeward Islands Company
  • Gulf of Saint Lawrence Trade and Fishing Company (or Gulf Company)
  • Hudson's Bay Company 1670
  • Company of Adventurers Trading to Africa (CATA, 1665)

The Three Banks and The Pound sterling

Pound sterling
Punnd Sasannach (Scottish Gaelic),
punt steirling (Irish Gaelic and Welsh),
Poond sterlin (Scots) and
Punt Sostynagh (Manx)
Official user(s) Flag of the Commonwealth (1658-1660) British Commonwealth and its Dominions, colonies and territories
Unofficial user(s) Aotearoa and British protectorates
60 shillings or three pounds Triple Unite
Gold coin, also called Broad
22 shillings Guinea
Gold coin
20 shillings or 1 pound Unite
Gold coin
1⁄20 shilling
Initially silver coin, finally cupronickel
1⁄240 (​1⁄12s) pence
Initially silver, later copper and bronze coin, finally cupronickel
1⁄960 (​1⁄4d) farthing
Initially tin or copper coins, later bronze coins
Symbol £
shilling s
pence d
farthing f or ​1⁄4d
Nickname quid or units
pence penny
Freq. used Farthing (​1⁄4d), Half Penny (​1⁄2d), Penny (1d), Twopence (2d), Sixpence (6d), Shilling (1/-), Florin or two shillings (2/-), five shillings (5/-) half-unite (10/), Unite or Broad (20/- or £1), Guinea (22/-) and Triple Unite (60/- or £3)
Rarely used Quarter farthing (​1⁄16d) Third farthing (​1⁄12d) Half farthing (​1⁄8d). All tin or copper tokens used in Ireland until late 19th century
Freq. used £1 (Unite note), 22/- (Guinea note), £3 (Triple Unite), £5 and £10
Rarely used £20 and £60, and £100
Central bank Bank of England, Bank of Scotland and Bank of Ireland (The Three Banks)
Printer Licensed printers and authorized note issuing private banks
Mint London Mint, Edinburgh Mint and Dublin Mint.

The creation of the Three Banks started to transform the economy to a more capitalist along the Bank Laws of 1698 and the Coinage Acts of 1701 and 1723. The Three Banks are the government lenders and also the main paper banknote issuers.

  • Governor and Company of Company of the Bank of England (Bank of England) 1694 (45th Commonwealth Year)
  • Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland (Bank of Scotland, Scottish Gaelic: Banca na h-Alba) 1695 (46th Commonwealth Year)
  • Bank of Ireland (Irish Gaelic: Banc na hÉireann) 1723 (74th Commonwealth Year)

The later two are also commercial and credit banks.

The pound sterling (£), commonly known as the pound, is the official currency of the British Commonwealth and its territories. The Coinage Act (or Coinage Union) of 1701[2] established the pound sterling as the sole currency in England, Scotland and Wales. After the Irish coinage crisis of 1722, the following year Ireland was incorporated to the Coinage Union, becoming effective in 1725[3].

  1. i.e. England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and Channel Islands.
  2. 52th Commonwealth Year.
  3. 76th Commonwealth Year.