An Act Further To Protect The Commerce Of The United States
After the end of American Revolution and the war against the British the relations between the United States and European powers stabilized and trading started again with Great Britain. However the growing hostility between Britain and France that culminated in war in 1793 jeopardized the relations of the United States with France. As a result of that two nations were on the brink of war by 1798. In spring and summer of 1798 Congress approved several acts to ensure the safety of the nation and among those was An Act Further To Protect The Commerce Of The United States. That act was one of the key decisions in order to combat French superiority on seas in the late 18th century.France, American ally in the Revolutionary Wars was an important trade partner of Americans. But both France and its adversary Great Britain saw a possibility to weaken each other by the trade embargo and insisted that other countries should follow that as well. Although the Frenchmen had helped Americans a few years before, trade with England was far more in the interests of Americans, the attitude which was definitely influenced by Britain's superiority on high seas. The attitude of France towards the United States started gradually worsening. The United
Third important aspect of the act was that it was meant not only to attack French privateers but also capture the French vessels or recapture the American used by the French. As already mentioned above, Americans faced a shortage of vessels to face the French threat thus reinforcements were badly needed. Therefore the act of 9th July prohibited damaging the bulk of the captured vessel and ordered to bring the vessel to the one of ports of the United States. There is no doubt that the intent of that clause was to provide much needed reinforcements for the American fleet. In April 1798 the news about XYZ bribe affair reached the United States and the war fever started. On 27th April 1798 Congress passed the act about enlarging the navy. On 25th June 1798 Congress passed the act which authorized attacking and capturing French vessels should they attempt to attack or search American vessels. On the 7th July 1798 Congress abolished all previous treaties with France, because treaties were the supreme law of the land and the war measures conflicted with them. Those acts meant that the United Nations prepared for the war, however in the end war was never declared. French Navy was not as mighty as Royal Navy, but it was still more threatening and powerful than the United States Navy. Authorities had ordered a number of frigates to be built but the need for vessels was more urgent. The Act of 9th July 1798 gave the owners of private vessels the right to earn commission from the authorities. In other words, Congress decided that United States needs privateers. French vessels and especially privateers had caused trouble for the Americans by constantly interfering with their trade without having to fear
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Approximate Word count = 1150
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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