Economic system based on the belief that the country with the most gold and silver is the most powerful nation Mercantilism

Mercantilist Beliefs £ £ To become the wealthiest most powerful nation a country must obtain as much gold & silver as possible and be self-sufficient £ £ By establishing a favorable balance of trade a nation can increase their wealth by exporting more than you import  Export – product sold to other countries so you make money  Import – product you buy from another country so your money goes to the other country  Import – product you buy from another country so your money goes to the other country.   a tariff (tax) will probably be placed on the imported product so the Mother country can make some money on it

£ To provide wealth and power for the Mother Country there are number of steps the Mother Country can use £ Creating and Regulating colonies   colony provides the Mother country with raw materials (self-sufficiency) Tobacco, sugar, molasses and furs could only be sent to England   colony buys Mother country’s manufactured goods.   colony is restricted from certain types of manufacturing   colony can only buy foreign goods through the Mother country

Navigation Acts £ £ Navigation Acts were passed to regulate trade and make money for the Mother Country. £ £ Navigation Acts stated that all ships carrying goods to and from the colonies must be English built and manned by a mostly English crew. £ £ Since Colonists were English, this encouraged the colonial industry of shipbuilding and shipping.

Navigation Acts £ £ Navigation acts also regulated colonial manufacturing. £ £ Certain products could not be produced in the colonies such as, woolen or beaver hats and iron products   cotton, furs and iron had to be sent to the Mother Country where they were made into products that were then sent back to the colonies and sold

Navigation Acts £ £ Navigation acts also regulated colonial raw materials. Certain raw materials such as, naval stores & tobacco, could only be sold to England. £ £ Colonists were not suppose to sell these valuable items to foreign countries, because the Mother Country would not make any money from the sale of produces going from the colony to another country £ £ Colonists often ignored these laws and smuggled & produced restricted items.

£ Great Britain’s use of the theory of Mercantilism will cause problems in the colonies £ Colonies disliked the Navigation Acts which restricted what they could manufacture and who they could trade with £ Great Britain will continue to pass laws favoring themselves over their colonial subjects £ Great Britain, because of the distance to the colonies and competing for control of Europe sometimes didn’t enforce their own laws

Salutary Neglect £ As long as the colonies preformed their duties of exporting raw materials and importing English manufactured goods Parliament saw no reason to devote large amounts of money and soldiers to enforce its laws in the colonies £ The colonies benefited from England’s Salutary Neglect by developing self-government which prepared them for the rebellion down the road £ When England tries to tighten it’s grip on the colonies for smuggling and ignoring the polices, problems develop and the colonists become resentful of the laws and regulations