Which term describes the british policy of taking american sailors and forcing them to work on british ships? a. hijacking b. impressment c. smuggling d. piracy it's not c.

The correct answer is B.

Impressment or 'the press' means taking men into a military or naval force  without their agreement. This term is mostly associated with the British practice of manning naval ships with 'pressed' men, who were forcibly pressed into service.

Under British law, the Navy had the right, during war times, to sweep through the streets across Britain and arresting men to be put in the Royal Navy.

The Royal Navy impressed many merchant and ordinary sailors. The 'press gangs' would move through the waterfronts searching for ' Roderick Random',  as they called the men they pressed. Legally, foreigners were protected from the press but this was often ignored, and many foreign sailors, including Americans, were pressed as well.

d.) continue to rise rapidly