Spice
The 16th-Century Contest that Shaped the Modern World
Published on 8. July 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-0-300-28112-5 (ISBN)
Description
The story of the sixteenth-century's epic contest for the spice trade, which propelled European maritime exploration and conquest across Asia and the Pacific
Spices drove the early modern world economy, and for Europeans they represented riches on an unprecedented scale. Cloves and nutmeg could reach Europe only via a complex web of trade routes, and for decades Spanish and Portuguese explorers competed to find their elusive source. But when the Portuguese finally reached the spice islands of the Moluccas in 1511, they set in motion a fierce competition for control.
Roger Crowley shows how this struggle shaped the modern world. From 1511 to 1571, European powers linked up the oceans, established vast maritime empires, and gave birth to global trade, all in the attempt to control the supply of spices.
Taking us on voyages from the dockyards of Seville to the vastness of the Pacific, the volcanic Spice Islands of Indonesia, the Arctic Circle, and the coasts of China, this is a narrative history rich in vivid eyewitness accounts of the adventures, shipwrecks, and sieges that formed the first colonial encounters-and remade the world economy for centuries to follow.
Spices drove the early modern world economy, and for Europeans they represented riches on an unprecedented scale. Cloves and nutmeg could reach Europe only via a complex web of trade routes, and for decades Spanish and Portuguese explorers competed to find their elusive source. But when the Portuguese finally reached the spice islands of the Moluccas in 1511, they set in motion a fierce competition for control.
Roger Crowley shows how this struggle shaped the modern world. From 1511 to 1571, European powers linked up the oceans, established vast maritime empires, and gave birth to global trade, all in the attempt to control the supply of spices.
Taking us on voyages from the dockyards of Seville to the vastness of the Pacific, the volcanic Spice Islands of Indonesia, the Arctic Circle, and the coasts of China, this is a narrative history rich in vivid eyewitness accounts of the adventures, shipwrecks, and sieges that formed the first colonial encounters-and remade the world economy for centuries to follow.
Reviews / Votes
"If you enjoy tales of pirates, exploration and blood-curdling mayhem, then Roger Crowley's swashbuckling account of the 16th-century race between Spain and Portugal for the Spice Islands of east Asia is the book for you."-Dominic Sandbrook, Times (UK), "Best History Books of 2024""Crowley's ability to weave threads together makes his story flow effortlessly across time and space. His details of maritime expeditions in particular emphasise their mix of adventure, ambition and cruelty."-Christopher Kissane, Irish Times
"Riveting, piquant history. . . . An engaging new look at seasoning's long ago seasons."-The Economist
"Crowley's propulsive narrative is as full of storms, privations, enslavement, piracy and blood as the heady whiff of spice."-Michael Prodger, New Statesman
"Crowley has the knack of turning fragments into a mosaic, and his latest book is another colorful, sweeping saga."?-Kirkus Reviews?
"That spices should be worth more than their weight in gold and prompt people to risk death exploring treacherous routes to get to them is a compelling story and Crowley tells it well."-Sophie Roell, Five Books
"Crowley is to be congratulated on a book which is not only eminently readable and rich in human drama, but which explores the birth of the modern global world."-Steven Veerapen, Aspects of History
"Crowley is perfectly qualified to confront this textured story."-Unseen Histories
"[A] fascinating book. . . . Well written and gives the reader a sense of what it must have been like to sail into unknown territory thousands of miles from home."-Money Week
"Written with the verve of a detective novel. . . . Crowley's book spans an action-packed 60 years."-Peter Carey, History Today
"An engaging account by Roger Crowley of the early trade wars between Spain and Portugal serves as a reminder of how money, greed and exploitation continues to shape the world."-Mark Rappolt, ArtReview
"A compelling and fact-rich narrative."-Michael Prodger, Country Life, Included in Country Life's "Unputdownable: The Books You Wish You Had Been Given for Christmas"
"An eminently readable account of a thrilling historical moment that transformed the world-and shaped it to become the one we live in today."-Zoltan Biedermann, author of (Dis)Connected Empires
"An extraordinary voyage through the sixteenth century with a master storyteller. Spice is a rollicking historical tale wherein incredible seafaring adventure collides with the geopolitics of the first global supply chain."-Admiral James Stavridis, USN (Ret), 16th Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and author of To Risk It All
"Roger Crowley is a great narrator, matched here to his greatest theme: the circling of the planet to create for the first time a truly global economy. A heart-pulsing story of terrifying hardship and inspiring courage."-David Frum, senior editor at the Atlantic
"A terrific story packed with powerful characters, and transformational moments in history, one that explains how and why the global world was created, and at what cost."-Andrew Lambert, author of Seapower States
"A spirited account of the brave, greedy, brutal, and often foolhardy incursions of Spanish-financed adventurers into what is now Indonesia and the Philippines."-Michael Krondl, author of The Taste of Conquest "If you enjoy tales of pirates, exploration and blood-curdling mayhem, then Roger Crowley's swashbuckling account of the 16th-century race between Spain and Portugal for the Spice Islands of east Asia is the book for you."-Dominic Sandbrook, Times (UK), "Best History Books of 2024"
"Crowley's ability to weave threads together makes his story flow effortlessly across time and space. His details of maritime expeditions in particular emphasise their mix of adventure, ambition and cruelty."-Christopher Kissane, Irish Times
"Riveting, piquant history. . . . An engaging new look at seasoning's long ago seasons."-The Economist
"Crowley's propulsive narrative is as full of storms, privations, enslavement, piracy and blood as the heady whiff of spice."-Michael Prodger, New Statesman
"Crowley has the knack of turning fragments into a mosaic, and his latest book is another colorful, sweeping saga."?-Kirkus Reviews?
"That spices should be worth more than their weight in gold and prompt people to risk death exploring treacherous routes to get to them is a compelling story and Crowley tells it well."-Sophie Roell, Five Books
"Crowley is to be congratulated on a book which is not only eminently readable and rich in human drama, but which explores the birth of the modern global world."-Steven Veerapen, Aspects of History
"Crowley is perfectly qualified to confront this textured story."-Unseen Histories
"[A] fascinating book. . . . Well written and gives the reader a sense of what it must have been like to sail into unknown territory thousands of miles from home."-Money Week
"Written with the verve of a detective novel. . . . Crowley's book spans an action-packed 60 years."-Peter Carey, History Today
"An engaging account by Roger Crowley of the early trade wars between Spain and Portugal serves as a reminder of how money, greed and exploitation continues to shape the world."-Mark Rappolt, ArtReview
"A compelling and fact-rich narrative."-Michael Prodger, Country Life, Included in Country Life's "Unputdownable: The Books You Wish You Had Been Given for Christmas"
"An eminently readable account of a thrilling historical moment that transformed the world-and shaped it to become the one we live in today."-Zoltan Biedermann, author of (Dis)Connected Empires
"An extraordinary voyage through the sixteenth century with a master storyteller. Spice is a rollicking historical tale wherein incredible seafaring adventure collides with the geopolitics of the first global supply chain."-Admiral James Stavridis, USN (Ret), 16th Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and author of To Risk It All
"Roger Crowley is a great narrator, matched here to his greatest theme: the circling of the planet to create for the first time a truly global economy. A heart-pulsing story of terrifying hardship and inspiring courage."-David Frum, senior editor at the Atlantic
"A terrific story packed with powerful characters, and transformational moments in history, one that explains how and why the global world was created, and at what cost."-Andrew Lambert, author of Seapower States
"A spirited account of the brave, greedy, brutal, and often foolhardy incursions of Spanish-financed adventurers into what is now Indonesia and the Philippines."-Michael Krondl, author of The Taste of Conquest
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
37 b-w + 16 color illus.+ 7 maps
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 127 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
316 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-300-28112-5 (9780300281125)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Roger Crowley is a narrative historian of the early modern period. He is the author of five celebrated books, including City of Fortune: How Venice Won and Lost a Naval Empire and Conquerors: How Portugal Forged the First Global Empire.