ABSTRACT
The total amount of public money lost by the navy from theft and fraud was, and still is, unknown. At the time Patrick Colquhoun wrote, the late eighteenth-century inflation was reaching its peak, and public finance had just suffered a major crisis in 1797. Wastage through theft of public funds or property was not to be ignored. When estimating losses by fraud and embezzlement, Colquhoun was right to focus on the public stores because they were the single greatest expense of the navy. Specialisation in supplying particular commodities to particular stations helped to reduce risks for contractors and thus also for the navy. Warship building in the royal dockyards proceeded slowly in wartime. The Comptroller of the Navy had a seat in the House of Commons, but no one there had the knowledge with which to challenge the professional judgements of the Navy Board.
