EMBARGO ACT

On December 22, 1807, President Thomas Jefferson (1801–09) signed the Embargo Act, which prohibited from leaving the United States ships destined for any foreign port. The legislation had been drawn up to pressure France and Britain. Those two countries were then at war and had been seizing United States merchant ships to prevent each other from receiving goods.

After the French navy was crushed at the Battle of Trafalgar (October 1805) by the British under Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758–1805), French ruler Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) turned to economic warfare in his long struggle with the British. He directed all countries under French control not to trade with Britain. With an economy dependent on trade, Britain struck back by imposing a naval blockade on France, which soon retaliated by interfering with U.S. shipping.

The United States tried to remain neutral when the struggle began in 1793. But the interruption of shipping to and from the Continent and the search and seizure of ships posed significant problems to U.S. export business. The Embargo Act was an attempt by Jefferson to solve these problems without getting involved in the conflict. The effort failed.

The embargo made sales of United States farm surpluses impossible. New England shippers protested the act and were joined by southern cotton and tobacco planters in their opposition. Still, the embargo remained in effect for 14 months, during which time the U.S. economy suffered. Many ships resorted to smuggling. In 1809 Congress passed the Non-Intercourse Act, which limited the shipping embargo to France and Britain; all other foreign ports were again open to American ships.

Despite efforts to remain neutral, the United States was ultimately drawn into the conflict three years later and fought with the British in the War of 1812 (1812–14).