Free Trade and Protectionism

One major issue featured permanently in Victorian periodicals throughout the century was Britain's external economic policy. In 1815 Britain was a protectionist power - an economic cordon surrounded her empire, with her mercantile marine and naval power underwritten by the Navigation Acts. By 1860, almost all of this restrictive legislation had disappeared.

This authoritative collection makes available to the economist for the first time the key contemporary writings on the extraordinary path to freer trade.