The Conquerors of the New World and Their Bondsmen; Being a Narrative of the Principal Events which Led to Negro Slavery in the West Indies and America
London: William Pickering, 1848; 1852. First edition. Hardcover. 2 vol. 8vo. [5], vi-x, [3], 2-264, [2]; [7], 2-300, [2] pp. Contemporary diced calf with twin gilt rules to each board, spines in six compartments with a red and brown morocco label lettered in gilt on each spine, elegant gilt decorations on the spines; all edges marbled. Marbled endpapers and pastedowns. Hogg 1136. Keynes and Kelly incorrectly cite these books as printed in 1849. Oxford DNB, John R. DeBruyn, "Helps, Sir Arthur (1813–1875)". The DNB cites Helps as possessing a strong aversion to slavery. The author undertook research on the Spanish colonization of the West Indies and the Americas. After this set, he produced another history of how Spanish Imperialism related to the history of the slave trade. Both sets are the product of seven years of research. The first volume of this set provides a history of the Spanish colony of Hispaniola, and provides details on how the Spanish colonizers usurped the land from the Native people of the Carribbean, and details how the colonizers treated the local peoples. Native uprisings are described as well. The second volume gives a history of the colonization of Cuba and has a long chapter on Bartolomeo de Las Casas. Las Casas, an enslaver turned Dominican Friar became an abolitionist after he witnessed the Spaniards commit horrible atrocities in Cuba. He would go on to work towards his goal of abolishing the use of slave-labor in the Western Hemisphere. This set is a useful history of Spanish and Portuguese imperialism and its effects in the Americas. Very Good. Item #000010954
Some rubbing and foxing to the extremities; leaves show scattered foxing.
Price: $400.00