Slave Captain
The Career of James Irving in the Liverpool Slave Trade
2nd Edition
Published on 1. May 2008
Book
Hardback
212 pages
978-1-84631-067-6 (ISBN)
Description
As few accounts written by slave ship captains are known to have survived, the personal papers of James Irving are of tremendous interest and academic significance. Irving built a successful career in the slave trade of eighteenth-century Liverpool, first as a ship's surgeon and then as a captain. Remarkably he was himself enslaved when his ship was wrecked off the coast of Morocco and he was captured by people described as 'wild Arabs' and 'savages'. This edition of forty letters and his journal reveals the reaction of the slaver to the experience of slavery, as well as throwing light on the complex and, to modern eyes, repugnant features of the transatlantic slave trade. The result is both a compelling narrative and a valuable reference text. This thoroughly revised edition of Suzanne Schwarz's best-selling book includes recently discovered archive material.
Reviews / Votes
Schwarz's scholarship is without flaw... this is not only a fascinating read, but it should prove very useful in teaching students about slavery and its contradictions.York University Canada This revised second edition makes a very worthwhile contribution to the literature on the British slave trade. While the primary source material is arranged according to a sensible, professional editing scheme, it is rendered meaningful by Suzanne Schwarz's excellent introductory chapters, references and annotations. Slave Captain therefore reveals much about Liverpool's role in the transatlantic slave trade as well as the life, career and attitudes of one of uts many practitioners.
International Journal of Maritime History, Vol XX, No. 2 Schwarz has also made effective and extensive use of the transatlantic slave trade data base to fill out details about the slave ship journeys in which Irving participated. The result is an exemplary edition that will be useful for scholars, students and not least, for people interested in the history of Liverpool and its interactions with the wider world.
Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, Volume 157
More details
Edition
2nd Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Liverpool
United Kingdom
Edition type
Revised edition
Dimensions
Height: 239 mm
Width: 163 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-84631-067-6 (9781846310676)
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
Content
List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables
Preface to the Second Edition
The Documents and Editorial Conventions
List of Abbreviations
I. James Irving's Career
1. Introduction
2. Early Career in the Liverpool Slave Trade
3. Irving's Voyages in the Transatlantic Slave Trade
4. Shipwreck and Enslavement
5. Freedom and Return to England
6. Conclusion
II. James Irving's Correspondence, 1786-1791
III. Journal of James Irving's Shipwreck and Enslavement, May 1789-Octorber 1790
A 'Short Account' by James Irving II, June-October 1789
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Preface to the Second Edition
The Documents and Editorial Conventions
List of Abbreviations
I. James Irving's Career
1. Introduction
2. Early Career in the Liverpool Slave Trade
3. Irving's Voyages in the Transatlantic Slave Trade
4. Shipwreck and Enslavement
5. Freedom and Return to England
6. Conclusion
II. James Irving's Correspondence, 1786-1791
III. Journal of James Irving's Shipwreck and Enslavement, May 1789-Octorber 1790
A 'Short Account' by James Irving II, June-October 1789
Notes
Bibliography
Index