A Family of Islands

Fiction & Literature
Cover of the book A Family of Islands by Alec Waugh, Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Alec Waugh ISBN: 9781448201778
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: September 28, 2011
Imprint: Bloomsbury Reader Language: English
Author: Alec Waugh
ISBN: 9781448201778
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: September 28, 2011
Imprint: Bloomsbury Reader
Language: English

First published in 1964, this book tells how what Columbus started in 1492 was finished in 1898, when the red and gold flag was lowered at Havana to mark the end of four centuries of Spanish dominance in the Caribbean.

For two and a half centuries after the Pope divided the world between Spain and Portugal, the navies of Britain, France, Spain and occasionally the Netherlands fought in the Caribbean. Most of the islands changed hands at least once. Europe discovered the delights of coffee, tea and cocoa; sugar boomed; fortunes were made and lost; the slave trade flourished. But after the Napoleonic Wars prosperity receded, the conscience of the world awoke and slavery was abolished, ending the halcyon days of European colonialism in the Indies.

A Family of Islands is full of fabulous people: Drake, Hawkins, Raleigh, Philip II of Spain, Elizabeth I; Henry Morgan, the pirate who was later knighted and made governor of Jamaica; Haiti's tragic trio: Toussaint L'Ouverture, Dessalines and Henri Christophe. It is full of stories about witch doctors and obeah spells and the unspeakable abominations of the slave trade.

With a sure sense of the exciting, Alec Waugh has written a perceptive and entertaining account of the history and humanity of a vivid part of the world where life can be as tranquil as a sunbeam or as tumultuous as a hurricane.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

First published in 1964, this book tells how what Columbus started in 1492 was finished in 1898, when the red and gold flag was lowered at Havana to mark the end of four centuries of Spanish dominance in the Caribbean.

For two and a half centuries after the Pope divided the world between Spain and Portugal, the navies of Britain, France, Spain and occasionally the Netherlands fought in the Caribbean. Most of the islands changed hands at least once. Europe discovered the delights of coffee, tea and cocoa; sugar boomed; fortunes were made and lost; the slave trade flourished. But after the Napoleonic Wars prosperity receded, the conscience of the world awoke and slavery was abolished, ending the halcyon days of European colonialism in the Indies.

A Family of Islands is full of fabulous people: Drake, Hawkins, Raleigh, Philip II of Spain, Elizabeth I; Henry Morgan, the pirate who was later knighted and made governor of Jamaica; Haiti's tragic trio: Toussaint L'Ouverture, Dessalines and Henri Christophe. It is full of stories about witch doctors and obeah spells and the unspeakable abominations of the slave trade.

With a sure sense of the exciting, Alec Waugh has written a perceptive and entertaining account of the history and humanity of a vivid part of the world where life can be as tranquil as a sunbeam or as tumultuous as a hurricane.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book Dyslexia by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Spitfire by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Berlin Rules by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Cinema in Central Asia by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Big Data by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Don't Even Think About It by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book John le Carré and the Cold War by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Exchange Rates, Growth and Crises by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book The Boat Maintenance Bible by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Ink by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Fireborn by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book A New History of Life by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book My Life as a Wife by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Colin Jordan and Britain's Neo-Nazi Movement by Alec Waugh
Cover of the book Improving Professional Learning through In-house Inquiry by Alec Waugh
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy