Embargo Act of 1807
The Embargo Act of 1807 was an import control act.
Contents
History
In the previous year, Congress had passed and Jefferson had signed the Non-importation Act. This was in response to the impressment of American sailors into the Royal Navy for the Napoleonic Wars. The act listed specific goods that were banned from importation.
Gallatin advised that the act was insufficient for enforcement. (Paper was an embargoed good, but many goods were shipped in paper.) Impressment also did not cease; rather notably, in June 1807 the HMS Leopard attacked and boarded the USS Chesapeake outside of Norfolk, and four sailors were seized.
The Embargo Act was written and passed in December 1807 to entirely embargo international trade. Two amendments were passed in early 1808 to further tighten the law (e.g., remove exceptions for privateers).
This law also proved to be unenforceable in the states bordering Canada, and in the last weeks of Jefferson's term in early 1809, the Non-Intercourse Act lifted trade controls except for the UK and France.
These laws were shortly followed by Macon's Bill Number 2.