Wk. 4 Richard Ligon, A True and Exact History of the Island of Barbadoes (1657)

Question 1

Richard Ligon, A True and Exact History of the Island of Barbadoes (1657)

Answer 1

Richard Ligon, A True and Exact History of the Island of Barbadoes (1657) – Richard Ligon (1585-1662) was an indebted English gentleman. In 1647 he travelled to Barbados and purchased a sugar plantation, which helped restore his fortunes. The excerpts from his True and Exact History presented here illustrate the economy of the island and the mechanism of sugar production.

How did the plantation differ from more conventional types of agricultural production?

• The crop was not indiginous to the land. “Some of the most industrious men, having gotten plants from Fernambock, a place in Brazil, and made a trial of them at the Barbados; and finding them to grow, they planted more and more”

What was the role of unfree labor?

• Slaves, which they considered (permanent) assets, were treated better than servents, which were their for only 5 years (temporary).“The slaves and their posterity, being subject to their masters for ever, are kept and preserved with greater care than the servants, who are theirs but for five years according to the law of the Island. So that for the time, the servants have the worser lives,”

Was the planation self-sufficient?

• No. They needed to import all the tools and materials to run the plantations. “The commodities these Ships bring to this Island are, servants and slaves, both men and women; horses, cattle, camels; utensils for boiling sugar, as coppers, tacks, goudges, and sockets”

How did it fit into the global economy of the 17th century?

• Became a major exporter of sugar and a major importer of slaves.
• Though the slaves outnumbered the non-slaves 2-1 (100,000 - 50,000), they were kept from rebelling by 3 factors:
  
  1. They had no access to weapons. “they are not suffered to touch or handle any weapons”
  2. They were fearful as they were beaten at the slightest infraction. “they are held in such awe and slavery, as they are fearful to appear in any daring act”
  3. Couldn’t communicate well with the other slaves (who spoke different languages) to organize an uprising. “fetched from several parts of Africa, who speak several languages, and by that means, one of them understands not another.”
• To placate the slaves, they attempted to form som family structure. “r if they have more men than women the men who are unmarried will come to their masters and complain that they cannot live without wives”
• Growing Sugar was new in Barbados, but it came to dominate the export there.“sugar-making was but newly practiced by the inhabitants there” “sugar, has gotten so much the start of all the rest of those that were held the staple commodities of the Island,” “sugar-making, which is now grown the sole trade of this Island.”
• Settled for lower grade sugar because it was faster to make.“And this is the whole process of making the muscavado sugar, whereof some is better and some worse, as the canes are; for ill canes can never make good sugar. I have yet said nothing of making white sugars, but that is much quicker said than done: for, though the muscavado sugar require but a month’s time to make it so, after it is boiled, yet the whites require four months.”