If the Irish Ran the World: Montserrat, 1630-1730

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McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, Oct 23, 1997 - History - 286 pages
Montserrat, although part of England's empire, was settled largely by the Irish and provides an opportunity to view the interaction of Irish emigrants with English imperialism in a situation where the Irish were not a small minority among white settlers. Within this context Akenson explores whether Irish imperialism on Montserrat differed from English imperialism in other colonies. Akenson reveals that the Irish proved to be as effective and as unfeeling colonists as the English and the Scottish, despite the long history of oppression in Ireland. He debunks the myth of the "nice" slave holder and the view that indentured labour prevailed in the West Indies in the seventeenth century. He also shows that the long-held habit of ignoring ethnic strife within the white ruling classes in the West Indies is misconceived. If the Irish Ran the World provides interesting insights into whether ethnicity was central to the making of the colonial world and the usefulness of studies of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century English imperialism in the Americas. It will be the basis of the Joanne Goodman Lectures at the University of Western Ontario in 1997.
 

Contents

1 Whos in Charge?
3
2 Irelands NeoFeudal Empire 16301650
12
3 From NeoFeudalism to Crown Rule 16501680
58
4 Capitalism at a Gallop 16801730
117
After 1730
154
6 Usable Traditions
171
The 1678 Census
189
The Census of 1729
201
Notes
205
Bibliography
255
Index
267
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About the author (1997)

Donald Harman Akenson is Douglas Professor of Canadian and Colonial History at Queen's University.

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