| In its first century, the Hudson's Bay Company clung tenaciously to the coastline of Rupert's Land where it traded with neighbouring Native populations. Its resistance to territorial expansion despite growth in French inland traffic invited accusations of inactivity and inefficiency from critics, since reiterated by historians of the fur trade and the Atlantic world. A completely overlooked yet crucial aspect of the trade was shipping. Mining previously underutilised archival materials, this thesis undertakes the first historical study of the maritime dimension of the Company's business by exploring the evolution and effectiveness of shipping strategies and the insights they may yield into both the Company and early modern Atlantic merchant shipping.;Far from being a sleepy enterprise, the Company adapted its shipping operations in prompt and thoughtful response to changes in the fur trade and the geopolitical climate. The Company developed what amounted to best practice in shipping, providing a model that will be of special interest to historians studying Atlantic merchant shipping in that age of significant commercial expansion.;KEYWORDS: Shipping, Hudson Bay, Hudson's Bay Company, Fur Trade, Sailing Ships, Maritime History, Merchant Mariners, Navigation-History, Seafaring, Great Britain-Colonies, Great Britain-Commerce-History, Colonial Companies, Canada-History- Seventeenth Century, Canada- History-Eighteenth Century, Atlantic World.;Five main chapters trace the process of improving overseas links on this northernmost Atlantic trading route to North America. The eventual determination of a safe and reliable sailing route relied upon the commissioning of maps and charts, thorough gathering of intelligence from narratives and logbooks, and early use of new navigational instruments and techniques. Achieving annual same-year return voyages demanded that the sailing schedule adhere to the rigid navigation season of Hudson Strait. Accomplished by synchronizing the timetables in London and at Bay-side with that of the fleet, the schedule could accommodate disruptions due to war and climate change associated with the Little Ice Age. Harmonizing schedules proved easier once the Company gained full control over shipping as owner, which also resulted in purpose-built defensible vessels, high re-sale values and internalized protection costs. Furthermore, the Company implemented a system that facilitated the recruitment, training and remuneration of captains and crews. Above average wages, internal promotions and rare incidents of death, sickness and injury generated high persistence rates and the loyalty essential to maintaining secrecy and stability. |
