Fun Fact #158 The Cattle Acts

 Fun Fact # 158

The Cattle Acts

 In 1660 the remaining Cattle ranchers in Britain were furious. They had to pay higher taxes than the colonies which could better compete in the Beef market. They demanded action be taken.

     Parliament did in fact take action and passed the Cattle acts of 1663 and 1667 forbidding the import of live cattle and produce from the colonies. These acts and the rest of the Navigation Acts, decimated the colonies' cattle markets and would later be listed among the grievances sent to the King by the American colonies almost 100 years later in 1774. 

    To sell their beef to Britain they had to slaughter their cows before it left the colony which was not an option. Yet they couldn't sell to other countries they had to go through England, which meant they'd likely still spoil before they reached their markets. For the American colonies the solution would be large- scale smuggling operations which would later support the fight for independence. However, Ireland had a very different plan. . . 

Image Credit: The Bowes Museum