page_title: History of the English fiscal system
section_title: The Restoration and beyond
hierarchical_section_title: History of the English fiscal system / The Restoration and beyond
caption_attribution_description: English: A 5 pound interest-bearing Kingdom of England Exchequer note dated 6 August 1697. These bills were first introduced one year earlier (1696) and paid interest for loans made to the government.[1] This note was issued during the reign of William III, less than a decade after England’s 1689 Bill of Rights was adopted, and a decade before Great Britain was formed.
context_page_description: The history of the English fiscal system affords the best known example of continuous financial development in terms of both institutions and methods. Although periods of great upheaval occurred from the time of the Norman Conquest to the beginning of the 20th century, the line of connection is almost entirely unbroken. Perhaps the most revolutionary changes occurred in the 17th century as a result of the Civil War and, later, the Glorious Revolution of 1688; though even then there was no real breach of continuity.
  The primitive financial institutions of early England centred round the king's household. In other words, the royal preceded the national economy in importance. Revenue dues collected by the king's agents, rents, or rather returns of produce from land, and special levies for emergencies formed the main elements of the royal income which gradually acquired greater regularity and consistency. There is, however, little or no evidence of what modern governments recognise as financial organisation until the 11th century.
context_section_description: A complete reconstruction of the revenue system became necessary during the Restoration. The feudal tenures and dues, with the prerogative rights of purveyance and pre-emption, could not be restored and careful inquiry showed that whilst, before the Civil War, the king's annual revenue amounted to just under £900,000, the needs of the restored monarchy would now be about £1,200,000 per annum. The commons therefore set about raising such a sum, an hereditary excise on beer and ale being voted in as compensation for the loss of old, feudal dues, whilst temporary excises on spirits, vinegar, coffee, chocolate and tea were put in place.
  All differences between old and new customs and subsidies had disappeared under the Commonwealth. The General or Great Statute (1660) provided a scale of duties, 5% on imports and exports, with special duties on wines and woollen cloths accompanied by a new book of rates. A house tax levied after the French pattern on each hearth, was introduced and established in 1662. Poll taxes were used as an extraordinary resource, as were the last subsidies, voted in 1663, and then forever abandoned. Licences on retailers and fees on law proceedings were further aids to revenue, which, in the later years of Charles II, and in the short reign of his successor, was kept up to the level of increasing expenditure, but only with difficulty.
  The Commonwealth assessments were revived on several occasions, indirect taxation being made more rigorous by the imposition of extra duties on brandy, tobacco and sugar as well as French linens and silks. One major development was the placing of customs (1670) and excise (1683) in the hands of special commissioners, as opposed to the former system of farming them out to private collectors. This more modern approach was further evidenced by the greater care taken with customs' administration. Amongst expert officials Dudley North, was the most distinguished commissioner of customs. In this period, too, the beginning of the public debt as in the appropriation of bankers' deposits may be found.
  The Revolution of 1688 may be regarded in both constitutional and financial terms as the completion of the work of the Long Parliament. In the latter respect its chief effects were:
  The transfer of the administration of finances from the king's nominees to officials under parliamentary control
  The consequent application of revenue to the purposes designated by parliamentary appropriation
  The rapid expansion of various forms of revenue, particularly indirect taxation
  The rise and growth of the national debt, combined with the creation of an effective banking system. (The greater part of the 18th century was occupied with the working out of these results.)
  The government of William III faced the expense of war whilst simultaneously needing to allay discontent at home. As a preliminary to settling the necessary revenue, a return was prepared, showing tax receipts of £1,100,000 and £1,800,000 during peace and wartime respectively. Parliament believed that £1,200,000 per annum would suffice for the kingdom's ordinary requirements but nevertheless introduced the Civil List, assigning £600,000 for certain fixed payments, leaving the remainder for other state needs. As "hearth money" had proved extremely unpopular, it was abolished, despite its yield of £170,000. Additionally, further excise duties were voted in for the duration of William and Mary's lifetimes, plus further customs duties, albeit that the latter were for a limited term only. However, these revenues were still totally insufficient to meet the pressures of war and new taxes were therefore created, older forms being revived.
  A series of poll and capitation taxes was imposed between 1689 and 1698 which were thereafter abandoned, being as unpopular as 'hearth money'. In 1688, monthly assessment were introduced, followed by income tax, followed by twelve-monthly assessments in 1690 and 1691. The way was thus prepared for the property tax of 1692, imposing a rate of 4s. in the pound on real estate, offices and personal property. Ho
caption: Kingdom of England Exchequer note-5 Pounds (1697), issued during the reign of William III
exif: {"Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "800", "Image YResolution": "800", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS5 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2014:10:16 22:13:15", "Image ExifOffset": "164", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "302", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7495", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "4500", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "3270"}