ship money

noun

English history a tax levied to finance the fitting out of warships: abolished 1640

Nearby words

ship, ship biscuit, ship canal, ship chandler, ship decanter, ship money, ship of state, ship of the line, ship of war, ship out, ship's articles

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Examples from the Web for ship money

Even the ship-money Johnson would not pronounce to have been an unconstitutional impost.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 4|Various
In 1636, John Hampden became universally known by his intrepid opposition to the ship-money, as an illegal tax.
The Illustrated London Reading Book|Various
The imposition of the ship-money tax was so distasteful that the Royal cause was not very popular at Bristol.
The Cathedrals of Great Britain|P. H. Ditchfield
When an arbitrary imposition is attempted upon the subject, undoubtedly it will not bear on its forehead the name of Ship-money.
Thoughts on the Present Discontents|Edmund Burke

In 1626 he was imprisoned for refusing to contribute towards the forced loan; he resisted the payment of ship-money.
The Browning Cyclopdia|Edward Berdoe