[Review of the state of the Royal Navy], [1750s].

21 v.

English

From the library of John Clevland. Purchased from William Reese Company on the James Marshall and Marie-Louise Osborn Fund, 2005.

Manuscript volumes, in a single hand, containing a comprehensive review of naval statutes, administrative matters, the powers and duties of various offices and officers, the supply of ships and seamen, particularly the practice of impressment, the laws of the sea, and other topics related to the administration and governance of the Royal Navy. Many volumes are organized chronologically, as lists of the applicable statutes on a given subject, accompanied by commentary. The work apparently documents the reforms and reorganization of the Navy Board by John Clevland and Sir George Anson during the 1740s; the latest entry is dated 1749. Information on the Navy and the Admiralty courts in the American colonies is found throughout, but the most substantive references, including the author's criticisms of colonial attitudes and practices, are found in volumes II, V, VI, XII, and XV. The first and final volumes are formal legal treatises; volume I draws on the legal theories of Thomas Rymer and John Selden. There are several very brief references to Samuel Pepys, Chief Secretary of the Admiralty from 1684 to 1688.

July 13, 2007

Review of the State of the Royal Navy. James Marshall and Marie-Louise Osborn Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.

Review of the State of the Royal Navy. James Marshall and Marie-Louise Osborn Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.