Dr Christer Petley, editor of the Slavery and Revolution website, reviews The Scandal of Colonial Rule, a book by Professor James Epstein of Vanderbilt University about the Caribbean, slavery and the British empire. It is an imaginative and innovative new take on these subjects. Important and unique not just because of its focus on Trinidad (often overlooked in favour of Jamaica or Barbados), Epstein’s book shines new light on the place of Caribbean slavery within wider debates about the transformation of the British empire in the Age of Revolution. It is ‘an imaginative and engrossing study, a model of painstaking scholarship, which is marked by its compelling arguments and incisive writing.’ Click here for the full review.
Monthly Archives: January 2014
12 Years a Slave on BBC History Extra
Dr Christer Petley, editor of the Slavery and Revolution website, answers questions on slavery and on the new movie, 12 Years a Slave, directed by Steve McQueen and based on the narrative of Solomon Northup. Click here for the ’60-second guide’.
Northup was a free man born in New York in 1808 who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841 before reclaiming his freedom in 1853. Read his story, the basis for the film, here: http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/northup/northup.html