How did the English justify their right to board neutral American ships? A) They confused American ships with English ships. B) They claimed the ships were part of the king's navy. C) They claimed they were looking for officers of the French navy. D) They said they were looking for English soliders who had deserted the British navy.

D.) They said they were looking for English soldiers who had deserted the British Navy.

Explanation:

Impressment means forced recruitment of the men to work as soldiers. It was practised by British Royal Navy, as it faced Manpower shortages due to the lack of qualified seaman and low pay and hence resorted to impressement to get the sailors. It was recruitment by force. They impressed 15, 000 S sailors to maintain their fleet during Napoleonic wars.

This practise also affected US and led to the war of 1812. American merchant vessels were a common target for the British. The Royal Navy officers used to board American ships, inspect the crew and seize the sailors who were accused of deserting British ships, many of the deserters used work on American ships.

D) They said they were looking for English soliders who had deserted the British navy.

This was also one of the direct causes of the War of 1812