Possessing the World
Taking the Measurements of Colonisation from the 18th to the 20th Century
1st Edition
Published on 1. July 2007
Book
Hardback
262 pages
978-1-84545-338-1 (ISBN)
Description
Based on an impressive body of information and data, this volume recounts the history of five continents over a long stretch of time and in a comparative approach. From the beginning of European expansion the question was posed: what were the "empire tools" that gave Europe its military superiority, even before the industrial revolution? What was it that enabled Europeans to withstand life-threatening tropical diseases and to control indigenous populations? This book gives a fresh and wide-ranging view of the construction and collapse of the modern colonial empires of Europe, the United States of America and Japan.
Reviews / Votes
"Etemad's work is refreshing...Controversial and difficult as [it] may be, his approach and efforts at working cautiously through available data to propose findings that make imperative the rethinking of a historiography is reason enough to make this book a valuable addition to the comparative studies of colonialism and world history." ? Journal of Colonialism and Colonial History"Since the publication of [the French edition], Bouda Etemad's book has remained an insider tip...The English version, one can only hope, will awake it from its slumber...Etemad's greatest achievement lies in his attempt to prove colonial military history with figures....The human costs of invasion and colonization...can be discussed more comprensively on the basis of this book." ? Historische Zeitschrift
"...historians will be grateful for the hard work that Etemad has done....Some books are made to be read. This one is meant to be consulted, judiciously, by historians seeking specific statistical information. As such, it is a valuable contribution to our understanding of the European colonial empires." ? Journal of World History
"...this book represents a valiant attempt to bring quantitative methodology to a statistically slippery and emotively complex subject, and serves as a very useful corrective to technological determinism in explaining European colonialism." ? H-Net Reviews
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Library binding
Illustrations
Bibliography; Index
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
538 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-84545-338-1 (9781845453381)
DOI
10.3167/9781845453381
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
Bouda Etemad is Professor of History at the Universities of Geneva and Lausanne, and the author of De l'utilite des empires. Colonisation et prosperite de l'Europe, XVIIIe-XXe siecle (Armand Colin 2005).
Content
Introduction
PART I: TOOLS OF EMPIRE AND HUMAN COST OF THE COLONIAL CONQUESTS
Chapter 1. Mortality and Numbers of the First Europeans in the Tropics
Overseas Necropolises
White Man's Solitude in the Tropics
Chapter 2. Malaria, Quinine and Colonial Conquests
The American Phase: The 'Fever Tree'
The Asian Phase: The Greatness and Misery of the Plantation System
The African Phase: Quinine and Colonial Conquests
Chapter 3. The Use of Indigenous Troops in Colonial Conquests
Asia and Africa Conquered by... Themselves
An Attempt at Quantification
On Good Human Resources Management
Empires at Bargain Prices
Chapter 4. European Losses During the Conquests
Typology and Assessment of Losses
Weapons Technologies and European Losses
Transportation, Communications and the Cost of Empire
Chapter 5. Indigenous Losses During the Conquests
Military Losses
Civilian Losses
Balance Sheet and Perspective
PART II: COLONIAL AREAS AND POPULATIONS A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EMPIRES
Chapter 6. Measuring the Land and Counting Heads
The Limitations of the Key Criteria
Comparative Sizes of the Colonial Empires
Counting Heads
Measuring the Land
Chapter 7. The Rate and Scale of Colonisation
Periodicity
Major Trends
Regional Differences
List of the Colonial Powers
Chapter 8. Comparative Portraits of the Empires I: 1760-1830
The Spanish and Portuguese Colonies: The First Models
The Metamorphosis of the English Domain
The French Domain: A Fragile Structure
The Dutch Domain: From the Trading Empire to the Java War
Chapter 9. Comparative Portraits of the Empires II: 1830-1880
British Colonisation: Two Tiers
'New' and 'Old' French Colonies
Java and the Cultivation System
Chapter 10. Comparative Portraits of the Empires III: 1880-1938
The Old Empire Builders: Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Portugal
The New Colonisers of Africa: Belgium, Germany, Italy
The Non-European Colonisers: Japan and the United States
Chapter 11. The Decolonisation Period
Definition
The Causes of Decolonisation
Decolonisation Underway
After Decolonisation
Conclusion
Appendixes
Sources
Bibliography
Index of Places
Index of Names
PART I: TOOLS OF EMPIRE AND HUMAN COST OF THE COLONIAL CONQUESTS
Chapter 1. Mortality and Numbers of the First Europeans in the Tropics
Overseas Necropolises
White Man's Solitude in the Tropics
Chapter 2. Malaria, Quinine and Colonial Conquests
The American Phase: The 'Fever Tree'
The Asian Phase: The Greatness and Misery of the Plantation System
The African Phase: Quinine and Colonial Conquests
Chapter 3. The Use of Indigenous Troops in Colonial Conquests
Asia and Africa Conquered by... Themselves
An Attempt at Quantification
On Good Human Resources Management
Empires at Bargain Prices
Chapter 4. European Losses During the Conquests
Typology and Assessment of Losses
Weapons Technologies and European Losses
Transportation, Communications and the Cost of Empire
Chapter 5. Indigenous Losses During the Conquests
Military Losses
Civilian Losses
Balance Sheet and Perspective
PART II: COLONIAL AREAS AND POPULATIONS A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EMPIRES
Chapter 6. Measuring the Land and Counting Heads
The Limitations of the Key Criteria
Comparative Sizes of the Colonial Empires
Counting Heads
Measuring the Land
Chapter 7. The Rate and Scale of Colonisation
Periodicity
Major Trends
Regional Differences
List of the Colonial Powers
Chapter 8. Comparative Portraits of the Empires I: 1760-1830
The Spanish and Portuguese Colonies: The First Models
The Metamorphosis of the English Domain
The French Domain: A Fragile Structure
The Dutch Domain: From the Trading Empire to the Java War
Chapter 9. Comparative Portraits of the Empires II: 1830-1880
British Colonisation: Two Tiers
'New' and 'Old' French Colonies
Java and the Cultivation System
Chapter 10. Comparative Portraits of the Empires III: 1880-1938
The Old Empire Builders: Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Portugal
The New Colonisers of Africa: Belgium, Germany, Italy
The Non-European Colonisers: Japan and the United States
Chapter 11. The Decolonisation Period
Definition
The Causes of Decolonisation
Decolonisation Underway
After Decolonisation
Conclusion
Appendixes
Sources
Bibliography
Index of Places
Index of Names