The history of England would not be complete without an explanation of the concept of taxes. Although taxation has been around since ancient times, it wasnt until the 11th century that taxes in England took on a more formalized approach.
The first recorded instance of taxation in England occurred during the reign of King Canute in the year 1016. He imposed a levy on his subjects to help fund the building of several churches in the country, and the idea of taxation was officially introduced.
As England became more centralized and the monarchy became stronger, taxes began to take on a much more important role in government. Kings would often impose heavy taxes on their subjects to raise money for both military and civil expenditure, as well as to cover their own extravagant lifestyles.
Over time, taxation became a systematic practice, with the Normans introducing an easily recognizable taxation system known as ‘scutage’. This system saw a portion of the population paying a fixed sum of money at the beginning of each year to the sovereign, while the others paid a lesser amount based on the size of their landholdings.
In 1290, King Edward I introduced a new form of taxation in England known as the ‘lay subsidy’. This was a tax imposed on the goods of each person and was based on the value of their ownership and land. This was the first documented system of taxation in England that was imposed on individuals in order to fund the monarchy.
The two most important tax laws during this period were the Statute of Labourers and the Statute of Purchases. The former saw a fixed sum of money being collected from each individual in order to support the costs of military service, while the latter made it illegal for anyone to buy goods for anything beyond their own use.
In 1533, the Statutes of Cambridge were created, which saw a percentage of peoples income being taxed in order to pay off national debt. This was the first documented instance of income tax in England, and it helped the monarchy to raise funds without the need to impose additional taxes on local citizens.
Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, taxation in England went through a number of changes, with different taxes being imposed on different goods and services. The most important of these was the ‘land tax’, which was imposed in 1692 and saw landowners paying a percentage of the rental value of their land in order to fund the crown. This form of taxation was eventually abolished in 1832.
Other taxes have been imposed on goods such as food and alcohol over the centuries, with these kinds of taxes still being the most important source of revenue for the government. Other taxes, such as road tax, petrol tax and vehicle excise duty, have also been important sources of revenue for the government.
Taxes are still an integral part of life in England today and the government imposes a range of taxes on its population. Although this may seem unfair to some, the history of taxation in England shows that taxes have played an important role in establishing the country as one of the most prosperous parts of the world.
