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A Brief History of the Caribbean: Indispensable for Travellers
A concise history of the Caribbean's long and fascinating history, from pre-contact civilisations to the present day
This is a concise history, intended for travellers, but of inestimable value to anyone looking for an overview of the Caribbean and its mainland coastal states, with a focus on the past few centuries.
The history of the Caribbean does not make much sense without factoring in the cities - Pensacola, New Orleans, Galveston - and the ambitions of the states on its continental shores, notably the United States.
This account is grounded in a look at the currents and channels of the sea, and its constraints, such as the Mosquito Coast, followed by the history of 'pre-contact' civilisations, focusing on the Maya and the Toltec Empire.
With the arrival of the Europeans, from the late fifteenth century to the early years of the seventeenth century, the story becomes one of exploration, conquest and settlement. Black charts the rise of slave economies and the Caribbean's place in the Atlantic world, also the arrival of the English - Hawkins and Drake - to challenge the Spanish.
He examines the sugar and coffee slave economies of the English, French, Spanish and Dutch, also the successful rebellion in Haiti in the eighteenth century, and how the West Indies were further transformed by the Louisiana Purchase, the American conquest of Florida and the incorporation of Texas.
He discusses the impact of Bolivar's rebellion in Spanish America, the end of slavery in the British Caribbean, and war between Mexico and America; also the defeat of the South by the Union, the American takeover of the Panama Canal project from France, and the Spanish-American War.
The first half of the twentieth century focuses on growing US intervention in Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Haiti and the Dominican Republic; Cuba as an American protectorate, and civil wars in Mexico.
The Cold War brought new tensions and conflict to the region, but the same period also saw the rise of the leisure industry. The last part of the book looks at the Caribbean today - political instability in Venezuela and Colombia, crime in Mexico, post-Castro Cuba - and the region's future prospects.
This is a concise history, intended for travellers, but of inestimable value to anyone looking for an overview of the Caribbean and its mainland coastal states, with a focus on the past few centuries.
The history of the Caribbean does not make much sense without factoring in the cities - Pensacola, New Orleans, Galveston - and the ambitions of the states on its continental shores, notably the United States.
This account is grounded in a look at the currents and channels of the sea, and its constraints, such as the Mosquito Coast, followed by the history of 'pre-contact' civilisations, focusing on the Maya and the Toltec Empire.
With the arrival of the Europeans, from the late fifteenth century to the early years of the seventeenth century, the story becomes one of exploration, conquest and settlement. Black charts the rise of slave economies and the Caribbean's place in the Atlantic world, also the arrival of the English - Hawkins and Drake - to challenge the Spanish.
He examines the sugar and coffee slave economies of the English, French, Spanish and Dutch, also the successful rebellion in Haiti in the eighteenth century, and how the West Indies were further transformed by the Louisiana Purchase, the American conquest of Florida and the incorporation of Texas.
He discusses the impact of Bolivar's rebellion in Spanish America, the end of slavery in the British Caribbean, and war between Mexico and America; also the defeat of the South by the Union, the American takeover of the Panama Canal project from France, and the Spanish-American War.
The first half of the twentieth century focuses on growing US intervention in Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Haiti and the Dominican Republic; Cuba as an American protectorate, and civil wars in Mexico.
The Cold War brought new tensions and conflict to the region, but the same period also saw the rise of the leisure industry. The last part of the book looks at the Caribbean today - political instability in Venezuela and Colombia, crime in Mexico, post-Castro Cuba - and the region's future prospects.
- GenresHistory
320 pages, Paperback
Published April 26, 2022
9 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
About the author
Jeremy Black
431 books198 followersJeremy Black is an English historian, who was formerly a professor of history at the University of Exeter. He is a senior fellow at the Center for the Study of America and the West at the Foreign Policy Research Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US.
Black is the author of over 180 books, principally but not exclusively on 18th-century British politics and international relations, and has been described by one commentator as "the most prolific historical scholar of our age". He has published on military and political history, including Warfare in the Western World, 1882–1975 (2001) and The World in the Twentieth Century (2002).
Black is the author of over 180 books, principally but not exclusively on 18th-century British politics and international relations, and has been described by one commentator as "the most prolific historical scholar of our age". He has published on military and political history, including Warfare in the Western World, 1882–1975 (2001) and The World in the Twentieth Century (2002).
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 28, 2025
A disappointment. There are few general history books about the Caribbean so I imagine it has quite a few readers. After reading I suspect there are quite a few disappointed readers. Two aspects of Black’s style are particularly irritating. His use of mightily and unnecessarily long sentences which many times contain different concepts. The second aspect are the use of boxed insets which are not related to the adjacent text and in some cases are downright childish, insets about James Bond novels, Hollywood films and the like appear to be fillers.
In terms of content two aspects are rather strange. Admittedly, the Caribbean is a difficult part of the world to write about due to the colonial contestation in the 16th century onwards but Black makes it more complex by including parts of Latin America which do not even claim to be part of the Caribbean. The second weird thing he does, is to include comparisons with east Asia. Why he does this is beyond me and it certainly adds little to the book.
His writing is not from a Caribbean people perspective it is from a colonialist or perhaps later in the book an imperialist perspective. A one point he talks about colonial power “taking a firm hand”. He never fails to mention the rapes of western women during rebellions of the slaves without mentioning, in detail the rapes of tens of thousands of slaves by the colonial masters. At another point in the book he tells us the USA was out to help the people when sending troops into the area. He is particularly worried about. Cuba and Venezuela, almost a religion of the US State Department/CIA hymn book.
Search for another history of the Caribbean before reading this one.
In terms of content two aspects are rather strange. Admittedly, the Caribbean is a difficult part of the world to write about due to the colonial contestation in the 16th century onwards but Black makes it more complex by including parts of Latin America which do not even claim to be part of the Caribbean. The second weird thing he does, is to include comparisons with east Asia. Why he does this is beyond me and it certainly adds little to the book.
His writing is not from a Caribbean people perspective it is from a colonialist or perhaps later in the book an imperialist perspective. A one point he talks about colonial power “taking a firm hand”. He never fails to mention the rapes of western women during rebellions of the slaves without mentioning, in detail the rapes of tens of thousands of slaves by the colonial masters. At another point in the book he tells us the USA was out to help the people when sending troops into the area. He is particularly worried about. Cuba and Venezuela, almost a religion of the US State Department/CIA hymn book.
Search for another history of the Caribbean before reading this one.
July 2, 2024
I picked this up because I was having a hard time finding any history books about the Caribbean that started before 1492. I learned everything I hoped to, but it was tough to read. The whole book used very long sentences with multiple ideas. It could be hard to follow.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews