Description:

George III King of England

Parliament Passes Act Restraining Trade of New England Colonies to Great Britain, Ireland, and the British West Indies, Ex-Forbes


GEORGE III, “An act to restrain the trade and commerce of the provinces of Massachuset’s Bay and New Hampshire, and colonies of Connecticut and Rhode Island, and Providence Plantation, in North America, to Great Britain, Ireland, and the British islands in the West Indies; and to prohibit such Provinces and Colonies from carrying on any Fishery on the Banks of Newfoundland, or other Places therein mentioned, under certain Conditions and Limitations,” [March 30, 1775]. Printed Document. 16 pp., cover page plus pages 295-307, 7.5" x 12". Residue from disbanding on left edge; very good.


In response to widespread and increasing civil disobedience in Massachusetts and New England, Parliament passed this act limited the export and import of all goods to and from only Great Britain, Ireland, and the British West Indies. This act also prohibited the New England colonies from fishing in the waters off Newfoundland and along most of the Atlantic coast. A second act later extended the prohibitions to most of the colonies south of New England.


Passed one year after Great Britain had imposed the first of the Intolerable Acts, these acts were more punitive in nature and were designed to convince colonists of the folly and error of resistance. The First Continental Congress had established a boycott in the fall of 1774, which caused disruption in British trade and revenues. The arrival of news of this act and related actions by the military governor of Massachusetts led directly to the first military confrontation of the American Revolutionary War at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. With open fighting underway, the act’s July 1 effective date was moot, and six months later, Parliament repealed the two restraining acts and the Boston Port Act in favor of a Prohibitory Act prohibiting any trade with the colonies and imposing a blockade.


Excerpt

“...whereas, during the Continuance of the Combinations and Disorders, which at this time prevail within the Provinces of Massachuset’s Bay and New Hampshire, and the Colonies of Connecticut and Rhode Island, to the Obstruction of the Commerce of these Kingdoms, and other his Majesty’s Dominions, and in Breach and Violation of the Laws of this Realm, it is highly unfit that the Inhabitants of the said Provinces and Colonies should enjoy the same Privileges of Trade, and the same Benefits and Advantages to which his Majesty’s faithful and obedient Subjects are entitled; be it therefore enacted .... That from and after the First Day of July, One thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, and during the Continuance of this Act, no Goods, Wares, or Merchandises, which are particularly enumerated in, and by the said Act made in the Twelfth Year of King Charles the Second, or any other Act, being the Growth, Product, or Manufacture of the Provinces of Massachuset’s Bay, or New Hampshire, or Colonies of Connecticut, Rhode Island, or Providence Plantation, in North America, or any or either of them, are to be brought to some other British Colony, or to Great Britain; or any such enumerated Goods, Wares, or Merchandise, which shall at any Time or Times have been imported or brought into the said Provinces or Colonies, or any or either of them, shall be shipped, carried, conveyed, or transported, from any of the said Provinces or Colonies respectively, to any Land, Island, Territory, Dominion, Port, or Place whatsoever, other than to Great Britain, or some of the British Islands in the West Indies, to be laid on Shore there; and that no other Goods, Wares, or Merchandises whatsoever, of the Growth, Product, or Manufacture of the Provinces or Colonies herein-before mentioned, or which shall at any Time or Times have been imported or brought into the same, shall, from and after the said First Day of July, and during the Continuance of this Act, be shipped, carried, conveyed, or transported, from any of the said Provinces or Colonies respectively, to any other Land, Island, Territory, Dominion, Port, or Place whatsoever, except to the Kingdoms of Great Britain or Ireland, or to some of the British Islands in the West Indies, to be laid on Shore there; any Law, Custom, or Usage, to the Contrary notwithstanding.”


Provenance: Ex-Forbes Collection. Malcolm Forbes (1919-1990), the American owner-publisher of Forbes magazine and a consummate collector, amassed one of the most substantial autograph collections of such breadth and depth that it filled a half-dozen residences on three continents. Many of his manuscripts were sold in a series of multi-million dollar sales by Christie's in the early 2000s. The Forbes name is considered to be the apex of provenance, especially when attached to an item like the above. We are honored to have been chosen by the family to sell at auction the substantial balance of the collection.


This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.


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