1st Edition
The Atlantic Connection A History of the Atlantic World, 1450-1900
Focusing on the interconnections of the Atlantic world from 1450-1900, The Atlantic Connection examines the major themes of Atlantic history. During this period, ships, goods, diseases, human beings and ideas flowed across the ocean, tying together the Atlantic basin in a complex web of relationships. Divided into five main thematic sections while maintaining a broadly chronological structure, this book considers key cultural themes such as gender, social developments, the economy, and ideologies as well as:
- the role of the Atlantic in ensuring European dominance
- the creation of a set of societies with new cultural norms and philosophical ideals that continued to evolve and to transform not only the Atlantic, but the rest of the world
- the contestation over rights and justice that emerged from the Atlantic world which continues to exist as a significant issue today.
The Atlantic Connection is shaped by its exploration of a key question: how did Europe come to dominate the Atlantic if not through its technological prowess? Adeptly weaving a multitude of events into a larger analytical narrative, this book provides a fascinating insight into this complex region and will be essential reading for students of Atlantic history.
List of figures. Acknowledgements. Preface. Introduction. The Dominance of the West. Part I: Explorations and First Contacts 1. The Atlantic World before 1492 2. Europe: A New Age of Trade and Travel 3. Medieval Africa. 4. The Americas Part II: Colonization and Conquest 5. The Voyages of Columbus 6. The Columbian Exchange 7. Earliest Encounters 8. Spanish Colonial Institutions in New Spain 9. The Colonization of Brazil 10. Colonial Settlements in Northern America and the Caribbean Part III: Connections, Journeys, and War 11. Atlantic Trade and Empire 12. Slavery Part IV: The Age of Ideas 13. The Enlightenment 14. The Age of Revolution 15. New forms of Resistance and Expansion 16. The Abolition of Slavery in the Atlantic Part V: The Paradox of Modernity 17. Industrialization 18. Migration 19. Atlantic Societies in the Nineteenth Century 20. Continued colonialism 21. Conclusions. Sources for further reading and bibliography. Index.
Biography
Anna Suranyi is Associate Professor in the Department of Humanities at Endicott College. Her publications include The Genius of the English Nation: Travel Writing and National Identity in Early Modern England (2008).
"Historians have long been challenged by the remarkable diversity of the peoples who engaged with one another on and across the Atlantic Ocean, and the resulting difficulty in doing justice to so many inter-related histories. In The Atlantic Connection Anna Suranyi has met this challenge with an impressively comprehensive overview of the key themes and issues of Atlantic history. Well-written and accessible, this book provides an excellent introduction to the ways in which the interactions between Europeans, Native Americans and Africans shaped their Atlantic World."
Simon P. Newman, University of Glasgow, UK
"Suranyi offers a clear, concise overview of Atlantic history from 1450 to 1900. The opening section of her book explains the Atlantic World as it existed before 1492. She examines Europe, Africa, and the Americas in some depth, providing readers with crucial background information necessary to understanding the development of the Atlantic World in the subsequent centuries...On the whole, this straightforward, easy to read and understand survey of Atlantic history would be an asset to collections in world history, comparative history, Caribbean history, and Atlantic history or studies. Summing Up: Highly recommended."
J. Rankin, East Tennessee State University, CHOICE Review
"This broad synthesis of the history of the Atlantic World by Anna Suranyi is a welcome entry into a field in which the historiography has proliferated over a period of many years...A major strength of Suranyi’s approach lies in the breadth of her themes and her willingness to synthesise boldly in areas that themselves have large, discrete historiographies."
John G. Reid, Saint Mary’s University, Nova Scotia, in Journal of Pacific History
"Suranyi's analysis of Atlantic societies in the nineteenth century highlights the results of the interdependence, transmissions, and developments emphasized throughout the book, which provides a good introduction to the Atlantic world."
David M. Carletta St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, Collierville, Tennessee
