But was that as vital as it had been? Global trade increased and made up the share. Trade to the USA (granted 1812 crunched that), Canada, the West Indies, South America even the Near and Far East were taking up larger and larger shares of trade anyway.
Ah, but American exports also plummeted after 1807, thanks to Jefferson's embargo act. Latin America helped, which is one of the reasons invading Spain was so colosally stupid.
The high taxes and insane high bank borrowing was a sign of British financial and economic strength.
Interest rates for British debt is a sign of strength; high taxes on its own (and the decision to go off gold because Britain couldnt' afford to maintain the gold standard) are not necessarily.
France's economy also grew in this period, if not as much as Britain's.
Faeelin: So do you have better numbers for how much of Britain's expenditure on these wars was covered by loans, or on British economic growth in those two decades (with periods of trouble, but never long enough to be crippling)?
No, I'm on vacation. Happy to give you a list of books which discuss it if you'd like though.