Prize Money in Nelson's Navy

Erscheinungsjahr 2026
ISBN: 978-1-83765-371-3
Verlag: Boydell Press

Buch, Englisch, 288 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 161 mm x 240 mm, Gewicht: 599 g

An overview of British prize law from the late seventeenth century to the twentieth century, focusing especially on how prize law disputes were handled in the era of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

Bringing the experience of a practising lawyer and drawing on previously untapped contemporary Georgian law reports, this book provides a fresh legal perspective on British prize law from the seventeenth to the twentieth century. Focusing on how prize law disputes were handled in the era of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, the book takes the reader into the socially connected worlds of lawyers, courts and naval officers. Setting out how conflicts were resolved within the rule of law, it considers real cases, notably the four-year litigation between Nelson and his patron Lord St Vincent over the 'flag' share of prize money from captured Spanish treasure. Highlighting how prize-taking was a crucial part of war strategy, it illustrates how the rules for the division of prize money evolved as an incentive, revealing a dynamic system adapting to economic and social pressures in a war for national survival. It also considers how prize money fitted in with 'international' law, how the United States handled prize money, discusses attempts to set up an International Prize Court that were ultimately rejected by Britain and explores how prize money in Britain was eventually brought to an end in 1945.

Grahame Aldous KC, barrister, judge, ocean sailor and naval historian completed his doctorate at King's College, London.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Aldous, Grahame

Fachgebiete

• Rechtswissenschaften Recht, Rechtswissenschaft Allgemein Rechtsgeschichte, Recht der Antike
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Mentalitäts- und Sozialgeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Geschichte der Schifffahrt

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface
Acknowledgements
Note on Legal Referencing and abbreviations

Introduction
1. The Origins of Prize Money
2. Prize Agency
3. A Law of Nations?
4. Who Got What: Captains, Officers and Crew
5. Who Got What: The 'Flag-share', Nelson v St Vincent
6. Who Got What: Problems with Commodores.
7. 1808: The Year of Revolution?
8. Freight Money, Head Money and Booty
9. Prize Money in the United States of America: The Birth of a Nation
10. Prize Money in Context

Appendices
1. List of Key Royal Prize Proclamations 1793-1815
2. List of Key Prize Related Statutes

Bibliography

Index of Reported Cases
Index

Über Autor(innen)

Aldous, Grahame
GRAHAME ALDOUS KC, barrister, judge, ocean sailor and naval historian completed his doctorate at King's College, London