The Spanish surrendered Havana to the British 250 years ago today,
opening the way for 11 months of British rule that changed Cuba and started
centuries of speculation on the question, “What if the Spanish had never come
back?” At Penultimos Dias, Vicente
Echerri has a wonderful essay on the history and the what-ifs.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
I have one thought on this. First, sugar and slavery would never have become as entrenched in Cuba. My understanding of that occupation is that opened up Cuba to greater international commerce, with slavery and sugar just exploding after this occupation.
antonio
absolutely right. the british were at the height of the slave trade in the caribbean. their sugar plantations were much more entrenched in other islands (barbados, then jamaica) Cuba offered ample opportunity to expand both under the short british rule
Not that the spanish were much better, but one has to understand real history, not what we want it to be
Thank, anon. There is a book I have area and highly recommend. Havana: Autobiography of a City by Alfredo Jose Estrada (Published 2007).
antonio
yes, i've read it, the best book on the history of havana that i know of.
another one that puts in context the british treatment in the caribbean is Sugar Barons by matthew parker. it touches on cuba, but more on the english and french history in the west indies. highly recommended.
Post a Comment