Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

During the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras, France was plagued by war and crop failures and was desperately in need of supplies. Legally and illegally, French privateers and cruisers took cargo from merchant vessels of every nation, perhaps the United States more than any other. At least 6,479 U.S. claims involving more than 2,300 vessels were filed and these claims give a close approximation of American goods lost to the French. The three main sections of this reference book present a comprehensive accounting of the losses (arranged by ship), descriptions of court cases involving important questions of law, and the disposition of claims. Also included are a glossary, a list of geographical locations mentioned in the text, and an overview of relevant acts of Congress, proclamations, treaties, and foreign decrees.

Unassuming but formidable, American maritime insurers used their position at the pinnacle of global trade to shape the new nation. The international information they gathered and the capital they generated enabled them to play central roles in state building and economic development. During the Revolution, they helped the U.S. negotiate foreign loans, sell state debts, and establish a single national bank. Afterward, they increased their influence by lending money to the federal government and to its citizens. Even as federal and state governments began to encroach on their domain, maritime insurers adapted, preserving their autonomy and authority through extensive involvement in the formation of commercial law. Leveraging their claims to unmatched expertise, they operated free from government interference while simultaneously embedding themselves into the nation's institutional fabric. By the early nineteenth century, insurers were no longer just risk assessors. They were nation builders and market makers. Deeply and imaginatively researched, Underwriters of the United States uses marine insurers to reveal a startlingly original story of risk, money, and power in the founding era.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1871. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.