Atlantic history
Encyclopedia
Atlantic history is a specialty field in history
that studies of the Atlantic World
in the early modern period
. It is premised on the idea that, following the rise of sustained Europe
an contact with the New World
in the 16th century, the continents that bordered the Atlantic Ocean
—the Americas
, Europe
, and Africa
—constituted a regional system or common sphere of economic and cultural exchange that can be studied as a totality.
Its theme is the complex interaction between Europe (especially Britain and France) and the New World colonies
. It encompasses a wide range of demographic, social, economic, political, legal, military, intellectual and religious topics treated in comparative fashion by looking at both sides of the Atlantic. Religious revivals characterized Britain and Germany, as well as the First Great Awakening
in the American colonies. Migration and race/slavery have been important topics.
Practitioners of Atlantic history typically focus on the interconnections and exchanges between these regions and the civilizations they harbored. In particular, they argue that the boundaries between nation states which traditionally determined the limits of older historiography should not be applied to such transnational phenomena as slavery
, colonialism
, missionary
activity and economic expansion
. Environmental history
and the study of historical demography
also play an important role, as many key questions in the field revolve around the ecological and epidemiological impact of the Columbian Exchange
.
In the last two decades Atlantic history has emerged as an increasingly popular alternative to the older discipline of imperial history, although it could be argued that the field is simply a refinement and reorientation of traditional historiography
dealing with the interaction between early modern Europeans and native peoples in the Atlantic sphere.
The formation of Atlantic History as a recognized area of study began in the 1980s under the impetus of American historians Bernard Bailyn
of Harvard University and Jack P. Greene of Johns Hopkins University, among others. The post-World War II integration of the European Union and the continuing importance of NATO played an indirect role in stimulating interest throughout the 1990s.
Greene directed a program at Johns Hopkins in Atlantic History from 1972 to 1992 that has now expanded to global concerns.
Other scholars in the field include Anthony Grafton
, Felipe Armesto-Mestre Anthony Pagden
, Karen Ordahl Kupperman, James D. Tracy, John Huxtable Elliott
, Carla G. Pestana, Isaac Land, and Jorge Canizares-Esguerra
.
. Colonialists have long been open to interdisciplinary perspectives, such as comparative approaches. In addition there was a frustration involved in writing about very few people in a small remote colony. Atlantic history opens the horizon to large forces at work over great distances.
Steele (2009), a Canadian scholar, argues that Atlantic history will tend to draw students beyond their national myths, while offering historical support for such policies as the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA), the Organization of American States
, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), the New Europe, Christendom, and even the United Nations
. He concludes, "The early modern Atlantic can even be read as a natural antechamber for American‐led globalization of capitalism and serve as an historical challenge to the coalescing New Europe. No wonder that the academic reception of the new Atlantic history has been enthusiastic in the United States, and less so in Britain, France, Spain, and Portugal, where histories of national Atlantic empires continue to thrive."
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
that studies of the Atlantic World
Atlantic world
The Atlantic World is an organizing concept for the historical study of the Atlantic Ocean rim from the beginning of the Age of Exploration to the anad modern era. In many ways the history of the "Atlantic world" culminates in the "Atlantic Revolutions" of the late 18th century and early 19th century...
in the early modern period
Early modern period
In history, the early modern period of modern history follows the late Middle Ages. Although the chronological limits of the period are open to debate, the timeframe spans the period after the late portion of the Middle Ages through the beginning of the Age of Revolutions...
. It is premised on the idea that, following the rise of sustained Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an contact with the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
in the 16th century, the continents that bordered the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
—the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
—constituted a regional system or common sphere of economic and cultural exchange that can be studied as a totality.
Its theme is the complex interaction between Europe (especially Britain and France) and the New World colonies
Colonial America
The colonial history of the United States covers the history from the start of European settlement and especially the history of the thirteen colonies of Britain until they declared independence in 1776. In the late 16th century, England, France, Spain and the Netherlands launched major...
. It encompasses a wide range of demographic, social, economic, political, legal, military, intellectual and religious topics treated in comparative fashion by looking at both sides of the Atlantic. Religious revivals characterized Britain and Germany, as well as the First Great Awakening
First Great Awakening
The First Awakening was a Christian revitalization movement that swept Protestant Europe and British America, and especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal...
in the American colonies. Migration and race/slavery have been important topics.
Practitioners of Atlantic history typically focus on the interconnections and exchanges between these regions and the civilizations they harbored. In particular, they argue that the boundaries between nation states which traditionally determined the limits of older historiography should not be applied to such transnational phenomena as slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
, missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
activity and economic expansion
Economic expansion
An economic expansion is an increase in the level of economic activity, and of the goods and services available in the market place. It is a period of economic growth as measured by a rise in real GDP.The explanation of such fluctuations in aggregate economic activity is one of the primary...
. Environmental history
Environmental history
Environmental history, a branch of historiography, is the study of human interaction with the natural world over time. In contrast to other historical disciplines, it emphasizes the active role nature plays in influencing human affairs. Environmental historians study how humans both shape their...
and the study of historical demography
Historical demography
Historical demography is the quantitative study of human population in the past. It is concerned both with the three basic components of population change--fertility, mortality, and migration--and with population characteristics related to those components, such as marriage, socioeconomic status,...
also play an important role, as many key questions in the field revolve around the ecological and epidemiological impact of the Columbian Exchange
Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange was a dramatically widespread exchange of animals, plants, culture, human populations , communicable disease, and ideas between the Eastern and Western hemispheres . It was one of the most significant events concerning ecology, agriculture, and culture in all of human history...
.
In the last two decades Atlantic history has emerged as an increasingly popular alternative to the older discipline of imperial history, although it could be argued that the field is simply a refinement and reorientation of traditional historiography
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
dealing with the interaction between early modern Europeans and native peoples in the Atlantic sphere.
The formation of Atlantic History as a recognized area of study began in the 1980s under the impetus of American historians Bernard Bailyn
Bernard Bailyn
Bernard Bailyn is an American historian, author, and professor specializing in U.S. Colonial and Revolutionary-era History. He has been a professor at Harvard University since 1953. Bailyn has won the Pulitzer Prize for History twice . In 1998 the National Endowment for the Humanities selected...
of Harvard University and Jack P. Greene of Johns Hopkins University, among others. The post-World War II integration of the European Union and the continuing importance of NATO played an indirect role in stimulating interest throughout the 1990s.
Bailyn
Bailyn's Seminar on the History of the Atlantic World promoted social and demographic studies, and especially regarding demographic flows of population into colonial America. As a leading advocate of the history of the Atlantic world, Bailyn has organized an annual international seminar at Harvard designed to promote scholarship in this field. Bailyn's Atlantic History: Concepts and Contours (2005) explores the borders and contents of the emerging field, which emphasizes cosmopolitan and multicultural elements that have tended to be neglected or considered in isolation by traditional historiography dealing with the Americas. Bailyn's reflections stem in part from his seminar at Harvard since the mid-1980s.Greene directed a program at Johns Hopkins in Atlantic History from 1972 to 1992 that has now expanded to global concerns.
Other scholars in the field include Anthony Grafton
Anthony Grafton
Anthony Grafton is a historian and the current Henry Putnam University Professor at Princeton University. He is also a corresponding fellow of the British Academy and a recipient of the Balzan Prize...
, Felipe Armesto-Mestre Anthony Pagden
Anthony Pagden
Anthony Robin Dermer Pagden is an author and distinguished professor of political science and history at the University of California, Los Angeles.-Biography:...
, Karen Ordahl Kupperman, James D. Tracy, John Huxtable Elliott
John Huxtable Elliott
Sir John Huxtable Elliott, FBA , who normally publishes as J.H. Elliott, is an eminent historian, Regius Professor Emeritus in the University of Oxford and Honorary Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford and Trinity College, Cambridge....
, Carla G. Pestana, Isaac Land, and Jorge Canizares-Esguerra
Jorge Canizares-Esguerra
Jorge Cañizares-Esguerra is an historian at the University of Texas at Austin, where he holds the Alice Drysdale Sheffield Professorship in history. He is most notable for his work in Atlantic history, the history of science in the early modern Spanish empire, and the colonizing ideologies of the...
.
Perspectives
Games (2006) explores the convergence of the multiple strands of scholarly interest that have generated the new field of Atlantic history, which takes as its geographic unit of analysis the Atlantic Ocean and the four continents that surround it. She argues Atlantic history is best approached as a slice of world history. The Atlantic, moreover, is a region that has logic as a unit of historical analysis only within a limited chronology. An Atlantic perspective can help historians understand changes within the region that a more limited geographic framework might obscure. Attempts to write a Braudelian Atlantic history, one that includes and connects the entire region, remain elusive, driven in part by methodological impediments, by the real disjunctions that characterized the Atlantic's historical and geographic components, by the disciplinary divisions that discourage historians from speaking to and writing for each other, and by the challenge of finding a vantage point that is not rooted in any single place.Colonial studies
One impetus for Atlantic studies began with the historians of slavery who started tracking the flows of slaves from Africa to the New World in the 1960s. A second source came from historians of colonial America. Many were trained in early modern European history and were familiar with the historiography regarding England and the British Empire., which had been introduced a century before by G.L. Beer and Charles McLean AndrewsCharles McLean Andrews
Charles McLean Andrews was one of the most distinguished American historians of his time and widely recognized as a leading authority on American colonial history...
. Colonialists have long been open to interdisciplinary perspectives, such as comparative approaches. In addition there was a frustration involved in writing about very few people in a small remote colony. Atlantic history opens the horizon to large forces at work over great distances.
Criticism
Some critics have complained that Atlantic history is little more than imperial history under another name. Others argue that it is simultaneously too expansive (pretending to subsume both of the American continents, Africa and Europe, without seriously engaging with them) and too small (arbitrarily isolating the Atlantic from other bodies of water).Steele (2009), a Canadian scholar, argues that Atlantic history will tend to draw students beyond their national myths, while offering historical support for such policies as the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
(NAFTA), the Organization of American States
Organization of American States
The Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), the New Europe, Christendom, and even the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. He concludes, "The early modern Atlantic can even be read as a natural antechamber for American‐led globalization of capitalism and serve as an historical challenge to the coalescing New Europe. No wonder that the academic reception of the new Atlantic history has been enthusiastic in the United States, and less so in Britain, France, Spain, and Portugal, where histories of national Atlantic empires continue to thrive."
External links
- H-ATLANTIC, daily email discussions on related scholarly topics; includes book reviews and announcements
- Oxford Bibliography Online: Atlantic History, annotated bibliography prepared by scholars
- International Seminar on the History of the Atlantic World, 1500-1825
- 2003 announcement of Atlantic Studies: Atlantic Studies: Literary, Cultural and Historical Perspectives, from Essex University in UK