If the Irish ran the world
Subtitle: Montserrat, 1630-1730
By: Donald Harman Akenson.
Series: The Joanne Goodman lectures of the University of Western Ontario ;; 1997; Joanne Goodman lectures ;; 1997.
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
Published: 1997
Place of publication: Montreal; Buffalo
Language: eng
Number of pages: 273
Subjects: Irish -- Montserrat -- History.; Montserrat -- History.; Montserrat -- Ethnic relations.
Description: What would have happened if the Irish had conquered and controlled a vast empire? Would they have been more humane rulers than the English? Using the Caribbean island of Montserrat as a case study of "Irish" imperialism, Donald Akenson addresses these questions and provides a detailed history of the island during its first century as a European colony.

Akenson reveals that the Irish proved to be as effective and as unfeeling colonists as the English and the Scottish, despite the long history of oppression in Ireland. He debunks the myth of the "nice" slave holder and the view that indentured labour prevailed in the West Indies in the seventeenth century. He also shows that the long-held habit of ignoring ethnic strife within the white ruling classes in the West Indies is misconceived.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [255]-266) and index.