After the Glorious Revolution

Abstract

Land tax burdens became even heavier and more permanent after 1688 as England became embroiled in continental conflict. There was much fiscal experimentation, but land tax, customs and excise were the dominant fiscal forces. Urban areas and the South and East of England took more than their fair share of fiscal weight. The challenge of successful land tax collection was met by a range of solutions created centrally and locally to meet these new demands. There was improved central stakeholder oversight, increased administrative resourcing, the deployment of more experienced personnel, increased delegation, simplification, flexibility, and a more careful choice of taxpayers. Why charge those who could not afford to pay or least likely to be there when the tax collector called? Most of the administrative burden was now delegated to long-serving paid officials who had appropriate skills and capabilities. They were overseen by an increasingly experienced body of senior tax commissioners.