Overview

Additional resources for this book are available on our Manifold site, which can be accessed via https://liverpooluniversitypress.manifoldapp.org/projects/crisis-and-resilience How did merchants deal with crises? From warfare to financial upheaval, from political machinations to the abolition of the slave trade, merchants and their networks in the eighteenth century faced a range of challenges. But they also demonstrated remarkable resilience. Providing new levels of detail on Britain’s sugar trade, this authoritative account explores how Bristol’s sugar merchants embodied cogs in the plantation machine, using their position of influence in Britain to maintain the production of sugar and violent systems of enslavement. It demonstrates how, as shipowners, these merchants protected their shipping, led the organisation of convoys, and took advantage of cheapening insurance. It reveals the inner workings of the sugar market and the strategies merchants used to remain profitable, showing how merchants navigated the transitions between peace and war. Finally, it uncovers their methods for managing credit and safeguarding their investments. Throughout, the nature of commerce in the eighteenth century is analysed in detail, from business networks to bills of exchange. Demonstrating meticulous, interdisciplinary research and thorough analysis of merchant business records, this book speaks broadly to the nature and experience of crisis in the eighteenth century and what this meant for the burgeoning systems of capitalism.

Full Product Details

Author:   Peter Buckles
Publisher:   Liverpool University Press
Imprint:   Liverpool University Press
Volume:   13
ISBN:  

9781802078831

ISBN 10:   1802078835
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   02 January 2024
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Frontmatter List of Figures and Tables Abbreviations Preface Introduction Sugar and Bristol in 1783 The structure of the book Knowledge, Networks, and the Crisis of Sugar Production in the West Indies New challenges Networks of knowledge Merchants and plantation labour Issues with management Food and scarcity in the islands Slavery and the threat of abolition Merchants and the production process Conclusion Merchant-shipowners and the Crisis of Shipping in the Bristol–West India Trade The challenges facing merchant-shipowners The challenges of warfare The convoy system Convoys and the seasonality of shipping Convoys and communications Convoys and delays Convoys and insurance Conclusion Merchants, Brokers, and the Structure of the Bristol Sugar Market The size and structure of Bristol’s sugar market The volume and value of sugar imports into Bristol, 1784–1801 Bristol’s sugar importers The separation of roles and confidence in the sugar market The mechanisms of the sugar market Demand Supply Bristol’s relationship with other markets Conclusion Crisis, Disruption, and Uncertainty in Bristol’s Sugar Market The return to peace and the threat of war Bristol and the collapse of the European sugar economy War in Europe and the West Indies The crisis of overproduction in the West Indies Conclusion 4.Creditors, Debtors, and Caution in Times of Crisis The tools of the trade The hazards of lending Caution in times of crisis The problems of debt recovery An effective screening process Conclusion Conclusion

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Peter Buckles is an independent researcher with expertise in eighteenth-century business history.

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