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Restoration England 1660-1685Deep Dive

Social & Economic Structure

Part of Trade and Economy — GCSE History

This deep dive covers Social & Economic Structure within Trade and Economy for GCSE History. Revise Trade and Economy in Restoration England 1660-1685 for GCSE History with 8 exam-style questions and 4 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 4 of 14 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

Topic position

Section 4 of 14

Practice

8 questions

Recall

4 flashcards

🔑 Social & Economic Structure

  • Landed gentry: Owned land, collected rents, had political power. Perhaps 20,000 families.
  • Merchants: Growing wealthy from trade. Could buy land, enter gentry. London merchants especially powerful.
  • Yeomen & farmers: Owned or rented land. Comfortable if harvests good. Vulnerable if not.
  • Labourers & poor: Most of population. Worked for wages. No vote, little security. Rural poverty common.
  • Urban workers: Apprentices, servants, craftsmen. London growing but dangerous (plague, fire showed that).

    • Keep building this topic

    Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in Trade and Economy. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.

    Key Trading CompaniesCoffee HousesSetting the SceneKey Features of Restoration Economy

    Practice Questions for Trade and Economy

    Which company was founded in 1660 and given a monopoly on the English slave trade?

    • A. The East India Company
    • B. The Royal African Company
    • C. The Hudson's Bay Company
    • D. The Levant Company
    1 markfoundation

    What did the Navigation Acts of 1660 require?

    • A. All English merchants to pay a tax on goods imported from the colonies
    • B. Colonial goods to be shipped to England on English-owned ships
    • C. The Royal African Company to share its monopoly with other English merchants
    • D. Coffee houses in London to be licensed by the Crown
    1 markfoundation

    Quick Recall Flashcards

    What was the East India Company?
    English trading company (founded 1600) with monopoly on trade with Asia. Under Charles II it expanded significantly — establishing permanent trading posts (factories) in India at Bombay (part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry in 1661). The basis of England's future Indian empire.
    What were the Navigation Acts?
    Laws (1651, renewed and strengthened 1660) requiring colonial goods to be shipped on English vessels crewed mainly by English sailors. Protected English merchants from Dutch competition and were the direct economic trigger for the Second Dutch War.

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    Coffee Houses