The Iron Act, also called the Importation, etc. Act 1749 (23 Geo. II c. 29), was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, which was one of the legislative measures introduced within the system of

Trade and Navigation Acts The Navigation Acts, or more broadly the Acts of Trade and Navigation, were a long series of English laws that developed, promoted, and regulated English ships, shipping, trade, and commerce between other countries and with its own colonies. The ...

. The Act sought to increase the importation of

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...

and

bar iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" t ...

from its American colonies and to prevent the building of iron-related production facilities within these colonies, particularly in North America where these raw materials were identified. The dual purpose of the Act was to increase manufacturing capacity within

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

itself, and to limit potential competition from the colonies possessing the raw materials.

The Act

The Act repealed the duties on pig iron and

imported from British America and imported into

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

respectively. Bar iron might be carried coastwise or by land from there to

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

dockyards, but otherwise not beyond 10 miles from London. The

iron Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...

must be marked with its place of origin, with most, if not all, pig iron was already marked. It also stipulated that no mill or engine for

slitting Roll slitting is a shearing operation that cuts a large roll of material into narrower rolls. There are two types of slitting: log slitting and rewind slitting. In log slitting the roll of material is treated as a whole (the 'log') and one or mo ...

or rolling iron or any plating forge to work with a

tilt hammer A trip hammer, also known as a tilt hammer or helve hammer, is a massive powered hammer. Traditional uses of trip hammers include pounding, decorticating and polishing of grain in agriculture. In mining, trip hammers were used for crushing metal ...

or any furnace for making steel was to be built in the American colonies, and for what mills already existed Colonial governors were required to certify them.

Analysis

Pig iron had been exported from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

since the 1720s, but little came from other colonies, nor did

. The continuance of this was encouraged, as was the production and export of bar iron (which required a

finery forge A finery forge is a forge used to produce wrought iron from pig iron by decarburization in a process called "fining" which involved liquifying cast iron in a fining hearth and removing carbon from the molten cast iron through oxidation. Finery ...

using a helve hammer not a

trip hammer A trip hammer, also known as a tilt hammer or helve hammer, is a massive powered hammer. Traditional uses of trip hammers include pounding, wikt:decorticate, decorticating and polishing of grain in agriculture. In mining, trip hammers were used f ...

). Conversely, the Act was designed to restrict the colonial manufacture of finished iron products and steel. Existing works could continue in operation, but no expansion would be possible in the output of: *

knives A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

scythe A scythe ( ) is an agricultural hand tool for mowing grass or harvesting crops. It is historically used to cut down or reap edible grains, before the process of threshing. The scythe has been largely replaced by horse-drawn and then tractor mac ...

sickle A sickle, bagging hook, reaping-hook or grasshook is a single-handed agricultural tool designed with variously curved blades and typically used for harvesting, or reaping, grain crops or cutting Succulent plant, succulent forage chiefly for feed ...

s and other edged tools as a tilt hammer would be needed to produce thin iron, and a steel furnace to make steel. *

nail Nail or Nails may refer to: In biology * Nail (anatomy), toughened protective protein-keratin (known as alpha-keratin, also found in hair) at the end of an animal digit, such as fingernail * Nail (beak), a plate of hard horny tissue at the tip ...

s which were made from rod iron, from a slitting mill. *

Tinplate Tinplate consists of sheets of steel coated with a thin layer of tin to impede rusting. Before the advent of cheap milled steel, the backing metal was wrought iron. While once more widely used, the primary use of tinplate now is the manufacture ...

, which required a rolling mill. This was the raw material from which

tinsmith A tinsmith is a person who makes and repairs things made of tin or other light metals. The profession may sometimes also be known as a tinner, tinker, tinman, or tinplate worker; whitesmith may also refer to this profession, though the same w ...

s made a wide variety of goods from tinned sheet iron. This was a continuation of a long term British policy, beginning with the

Navigation Acts The Navigation Acts, or more broadly the Acts of Trade and Navigation, were a long series of English laws that developed, promoted, and regulated English ships, shipping, trade, and commerce between other countries and with its own colonies. The ...

, which were designed to direct most

American trade Foreign trade of the United States comprises the international imports and exports of the United States. The country is among the top three global importers and exporters. The regulation of trade is constitutionally vested in the United S ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and later

, and to encourage the manufacture of goods for export to the colonies in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

. The Iron Act, if enforced, would have severely limited the emerging iron manufacturing industry in the colonies. However, as with other trade legislation, enforcement was poor because no one had any significant incentive to ensure compliance. Nevertheless, this was one of a number of measures restrictive on the trade of British Colonies in North America that were one of the causes of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. Part of the reason for lax enforcement may be due to the involvement of Colonial Officials in iron works. Virginia Governors Gooch and Spotswood were both deeply involved in iron manufacture. Gooch was a part owner of the Fredericksville Ironworks. Spotswood owned Tubal Ironworks (a blast furnace and probably

) and the double air furnace at Massaponnax. Other prominent members of the Virginia aristocracy and House of Burgesses involved in the iron industry included

John Tayloe II Colonel John Tayloe II (28 May 172118 April 1779) was a planter and politician, among the richest planters in colonial Virginia. He served in public office including the Virginia Governor's Council, also known as the Virginia Council of State. ...

( Bristol Iron Works, near Fredericksburg; Neabsco Iron Works; and Occoquan Ironworks),

Augustine Washington Augustine Washington Sr. (November 12, 1694 – April 12, 1743) was the father of the first U.S. president, George Washington. He served as an officer in the British Navy during the War of Jenkin's Ear although he belonged to the Colony of Vir ...

, George's father (Accoceek/Potomac Ironworks), and Benjamin Grimes (Grimes Recovery and a bloomery near Fredericksburg).

Amendments and repeal

The limitation of imported bar iron to London and the dockyards was partly repealed by the Importation Act 1757 (30 Geo. II c. 16), with duty-free imports to any part of Great Britain being permitted. A clause requiring bar iron to be marked was similarly repealed as unnecessary. A part of the act was also repealed by the Customs, etc. Act 1765, (5 Geo. III c.45). The whole Act was repealed by the

Statute Law Revision Act 1867 The Statute Law Revision Act 1867 (30 & 31 Vict c 59) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of a revised edition of the statutes. This Act was partly in force in Great ...

, due to the replacement of

colonial rule Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...

with the Dominion of Canada.

Bibliography

External links

Contemporary debate on the Iron Act

Text of the Iron Act
{{British law and the American Revolution Act Great Britain Acts of Parliament 1750 Laws leading to the American Revolution 1750 in the Thirteen Colonies Repealed Great Britain Acts of Parliament