Transport vessels for the British Government's importation of rice from Bengal (1795–1796)
Wheat prices in Britain spiked in 1795, following an almost 40% drop in domestic grain output per acre. Popular pressure forced the British Government to charter transport vessels to import rice from Bengal.
The price of a "Winchester bushel" averaged about 6s 6d in 1794 but peaked at 13s 6d in August 1795. The price did not return to 6s 6d until March 1796. During the period of high prices municipal governments in towns such as Oxford and Cambridge seized cargoes of wheat passing through them, something that was illegal. There were bread riots in July–August 1795 in some 14 towns, which came to be known as the revolt of the housewives. Burials increased substantially in 1795 relative to 1794 and 1796. In response, the British Government took over the import of grains from abroad. All wheat imported up to the end of 1795 had been purchased on government account. It came either on government vessels or vessels chartered to the government.[1]
Because the British East India Company (EIC) had a legal monopoly on all trade between Britain and India, the Government worked through the EIC for imports from Bengal. The EIC notified its administration in Bengal of the government's requirements; the government in Bengal then engaged vessels already there.
Absent original research, there appears to be only one readily available list of vessels chartered. There is nothing to indicate whether the list is exhaustive or only partial.[2] Of the 14 vessels listed, 10 succeeded in arriving in Britain. The French captured two while they were en route, and two were wrecked.
The decision to import rice from Bengal lead to a similar program in 1800–1802. That time the program involved at least 28 vessels. Only two were lost.
| Vessel | Master | Burthen (bm)[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abercromby | John Gilmore | 600, 615, or 670 | |
| Amelia | Crawford | 1000, or 1400 | Captured on way to England; cargo loss charged to "His Majesty's Government" |
| Anna | M. Gilmore | 850 or 899 | Known as Bombay Anna |
| Berwick | John McTaggart | 420, or 426 | |
| Britannia | Thomas Nixon, Jr. | 384 | |
| Chichester | R. Blake | 362 or 450 | |
| Eliza Ann | John Lloyd | 459 or 500 | |
| Favourite | 900 | Captured on way to England; cargo loss charged to "His Majesty's Government" | |
| Ganges | Thomas Patrickson | 617 or 700 | |
| General Medows, or General Meadows | McDonald | 340 or 575 | |
| Harriet | Matthew Sparrow | 373, or 500 | |
| Hercules | Benjamin Stout | 600 or 628 | Wrecked on 15 June 1796 between Bengal and the Cape. Cargo loss charged to "His Majesty's Government". |
| Montrose | 761 | Wrecked between Bengal and the Cape. Cargo loss charged to "His Majesty's Government". | |
| Nonsuch | Robert Duffin | 483 |
Notes[edit]
- ^ Burthen is a volumetric measure of a vessel's size and does not translate into absolute tonnage of cargo a vessel can carry. All one may infer is that a vessel with a greater burthen is larger and could carry more cargo than one with a lesser burthen.
Citations[edit]
References[edit]
- House of Commons, Parliament, Great Britain (1812) Parliamentary Papers. (H.M. Stationery Office).
- House of Commons, Parliament, Great Britain (1830). Reports from the Select Committee of the House of Commons appointed to enquire into the present state of the affairs of the East India Company, together with the minutes of evidence, an appendix of documents, and a general index. Vol. 2. Printed by order of the honourable court of directors, by J.L. Cox.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Stern, Walter M. (May 1964) "The Bread crisis in Britain, 1795–96", Economica, Vol. 31, No. 122, pp. 168–187.