Ben Franklin's World BFW Revisited: Smuggling and the American Revolution
Dec 23, 2025
Join Fabrizio Prado, a specialist in Atlantic networks, Christian Coate, an expert on Anglo-Dutch trade, and historian Vim Kloster, as they unravel the intriguing world of smuggling during the American Revolution. They discuss how St. Eustatius emerged as a bustling smuggling hub, allowing American merchants to subvert British trade regulations. The trio explores the political implications of smuggling, revealing how these illicit networks were pivotal in shaping revolutionary sentiment and economic self-determination. Don't miss the dramatic tales of conflict that followed!
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Regulation Raised Prices And Encouraged Evasion
- Navigation Acts tried to reroute colonial trade through England but often raised prices and incentivized illegal Dutch trade.
- Colonists framed resistance as loyal pleas for economic necessity, not initial political rebellion.
Colonial Markets Relied On Foreign Islands
- By the mid-18th century Dutch and French islands supplied molasses, rum, and cheap tea that colonists needed and preferred.
- Estimates suggest large shares of colonial tea, e.g., Boston's, entered via smuggling networks.
Smuggling Helped Radicalize Political Thought
- Smuggling's economic logic fused with political claims during the imperial crisis.
- Economic self-determination arguments merged with political demands about representation.