Ship money
Encyclopedia
Ship money refers to a tax
that Charles I of England
tried to levy without the consent of Parliament. This tax, which was only applied to coastal towns during a time of war, was intended to offset the cost of defending that part of the coast, and could be paid in actual ships or the equivalent value. The collection of the tax inland during peacetime started in 1634 and provoked increasing resistance by 1636. This conflict was one of the causes of the English Civil War
.
that in 1634 William Noy
, the Attorney-General, unearthed in the Tower of London
old records of ship money as a tax disused and forgotten for centuries has no real foundation. It is true that it was the suggestion of Noy that a further resort should be had to this expedient for raising money when, in 1634, Charles made a secret treaty with Philip IV of Spain
to assist him against the Dutch; and Noy set himself to investigate such ancient legal learning as was in existence in support of the demand.
The King having obtained an opinion in favour of the legality of the writ from Lord Keeper Coventry
and the Earl of Manchester
, the writ was issued in October 1634 and directed to the justices of London and other seaports, requiring them to provide a certain number of ships of war of a prescribed tonnage and equipment, or their equivalent in money, and empowering them to assess the inhabitants for payment of the tax according to their substance.
The citizens of London immediately claimed exemption under their charter, while other towns argued as to the amount of their assessment; but no resistance on constitutional grounds appears to have been offered to the validity of the writ, and a sum of £104,000 was collected.
On August 4, 1635, a second writ of ship money was issued, directed on this occasion, as in the revoked writ of 1628, to the sheriffs and justices of inland as well as of maritime counties and towns, demanding the sum of £208,000, which was to be obtained by assessment on personal as well as real property
, payment to be enforced by distress.
This demand excited growing popular discontent, which now began to see in it a determination on the part of the King to dispense altogether with parliamentary government. Charles, therefore, obtained a written opinion, signed by ten out of twelve judges consulted, to the effect that in time of national danger, of which the Crown was the sole judge, ship money might legally be levied on all parts of the country by writ under the Great Seal
.
The issue of a third writ of ship money on 9 October 1636 made it evident that the ancient restrictions, which limited the levying of the tax to the maritime parts of the Kingdom and to times of war (or imminent national danger), had been finally swept away, and that the King intended to convert it into a permanent and general form of taxation without parliamentary sanction. The judges again, at Charles's request, gave an opinion favourable to the prerogative, which was read by Lord Coventry
in the Star Chamber
and by the judges on assize.
, a wealthy Buckinghamshire
gentleman (landowner). The case against the latter (Rex v. Hampden, 3 State Trials, 825) was heard before all the judges in the Court of Exchequer Chamber
, Hampden being defended by Oliver St John
. Hampden
lost the case, 7 judges to 5, and ship money continued to be levied, provoking yet more opposition, until, overtaken by events, it was repealed by the Long Parliament
. The narrowness of the case also encouraged others to refuse the tax, and by 1639, less than 20% of the money demanded was raised. Even so, ship money was enough of a financial success to help Charles to meet peacetime government expenditures in the 1630s. As matters deteriorated in the kingdoms starting with the Bishops' War, ship money would prove insufficient to finance the king's military needs.
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
that Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
tried to levy without the consent of Parliament. This tax, which was only applied to coastal towns during a time of war, was intended to offset the cost of defending that part of the coast, and could be paid in actual ships or the equivalent value. The collection of the tax inland during peacetime started in 1634 and provoked increasing resistance by 1636. This conflict was one of the causes of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
Opposition
Charles I's demand for ship money aroused serious opposition was when his requests to sheriffs were rejected by the overburdened inland populations. Many sheriffs refused to assist in collecting the money, and Charles withdrew the writs. It will be seen, then, that the statement of Henry HallamHenry Hallam
Henry Hallam was an English historian.-Life:The only son of John Hallam, canon of Windsor and dean of Bristol, Henry Hallam was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1799...
that in 1634 William Noy
William Noy
William Noy was a noted British jurist.He was born on the family estate of Pendrea in St Buryan, Cornwall. He left Exeter College, Oxford without taking a degree, and entered Lincoln's Inn in 1594. From 1603 until his death he was elected, with one exception, to each parliament, sitting...
, the Attorney-General, unearthed in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
old records of ship money as a tax disused and forgotten for centuries has no real foundation. It is true that it was the suggestion of Noy that a further resort should be had to this expedient for raising money when, in 1634, Charles made a secret treaty with Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV was King of Spain between 1621 and 1665, sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands, and King of Portugal until 1640...
to assist him against the Dutch; and Noy set himself to investigate such ancient legal learning as was in existence in support of the demand.
The King having obtained an opinion in favour of the legality of the writ from Lord Keeper Coventry
Earl of Coventry
Earl of Coventry is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. It was created for the first time in 1623 in favour of George Villiers, 1st Marquess of Buckingham. He was made Duke of Buckingham at the same time. For more information on this creation of the earldom, see the...
and the Earl of Manchester
Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester
Sir Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester was an English judge, politician and peer.-Life:He was the grandson of Sir Edward Montagu, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1539 to 1545, who was named by King Henry VIII one of the executors of his will, and governor to his son, Edward VI.Born...
, the writ was issued in October 1634 and directed to the justices of London and other seaports, requiring them to provide a certain number of ships of war of a prescribed tonnage and equipment, or their equivalent in money, and empowering them to assess the inhabitants for payment of the tax according to their substance.
Three writ attempts
The distinctive feature of the writ of 1634 was that it was issued, contrary to all precedent, in time of peace. Charles desired to conceal the true aim of his policy, which he knew would be detested by the country, and he accordingly alleged as a pretext for the impost the danger to commerce from pirates, and the general condition of unrest in Europe.The citizens of London immediately claimed exemption under their charter, while other towns argued as to the amount of their assessment; but no resistance on constitutional grounds appears to have been offered to the validity of the writ, and a sum of £104,000 was collected.
On August 4, 1635, a second writ of ship money was issued, directed on this occasion, as in the revoked writ of 1628, to the sheriffs and justices of inland as well as of maritime counties and towns, demanding the sum of £208,000, which was to be obtained by assessment on personal as well as real property
Real property
In English Common Law, real property, real estate, realty, or immovable property is any subset of land that has been legally defined and the improvements to it made by human efforts: any buildings, machinery, wells, dams, ponds, mines, canals, roads, various property rights, and so forth...
, payment to be enforced by distress.
This demand excited growing popular discontent, which now began to see in it a determination on the part of the King to dispense altogether with parliamentary government. Charles, therefore, obtained a written opinion, signed by ten out of twelve judges consulted, to the effect that in time of national danger, of which the Crown was the sole judge, ship money might legally be levied on all parts of the country by writ under the Great Seal
Great Seal of the Realm
The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
.
The issue of a third writ of ship money on 9 October 1636 made it evident that the ancient restrictions, which limited the levying of the tax to the maritime parts of the Kingdom and to times of war (or imminent national danger), had been finally swept away, and that the King intended to convert it into a permanent and general form of taxation without parliamentary sanction. The judges again, at Charles's request, gave an opinion favourable to the prerogative, which was read by Lord Coventry
Earl of Coventry
Earl of Coventry is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. It was created for the first time in 1623 in favour of George Villiers, 1st Marquess of Buckingham. He was made Duke of Buckingham at the same time. For more information on this creation of the earldom, see the...
in the Star Chamber
Star Chamber
The Star Chamber was an English court of law that sat at the royal Palace of Westminster until 1641. It was made up of Privy Counsellors, as well as common-law judges and supplemented the activities of the common-law and equity courts in both civil and criminal matters...
and by the judges on assize.
Refusal
Payment was, however, refused by John HampdenJohn Hampden
John Hampden was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643) was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643)...
, a wealthy Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
gentleman (landowner). The case against the latter (Rex v. Hampden, 3 State Trials, 825) was heard before all the judges in the Court of Exchequer Chamber
Court of Exchequer Chamber
The Court of Exchequer Chamber was an English appellate court for common law civil actions, prior to the reforms of the Judicature Acts of 1873-1875....
, Hampden being defended by Oliver St John
Oliver St John
Sir Oliver St John , was an English judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War.- Early life :...
. Hampden
John Hampden
John Hampden was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643) was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643)...
lost the case, 7 judges to 5, and ship money continued to be levied, provoking yet more opposition, until, overtaken by events, it was repealed by the Long Parliament
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...
. The narrowness of the case also encouraged others to refuse the tax, and by 1639, less than 20% of the money demanded was raised. Even so, ship money was enough of a financial success to help Charles to meet peacetime government expenditures in the 1630s. As matters deteriorated in the kingdoms starting with the Bishops' War, ship money would prove insufficient to finance the king's military needs.
Further reading
- Keir, D.L. "The Case of the Ship-Money" 52 Law Quarterly Review, (1936) pp546.
- Mendle, Michael. The Ship Money Case, The Case of Shipmony, and the Development of Henry Parker's Parliamentary Absolutism. The Historical Journal, Vol. 32, No. 3 (Sep., 1989), pp. 513-536.