A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution

Synopsis

Part One: Causes: Economic Divergence In West And West-central Africa. Three Measures Of Gold: The Rise And Fall Of The Great Empires Of The Sahel -- Causeways Across The Savannah: From Senegambia To Sierra Leone -- Ready Money: The Gold Coast And The Gold Trade -- Rivers Of Cloth, Masks Of Bronze: The Bights Of Benin And Biafra -- The Kingdom Of Kongo: From Majesty To Revolt -- Part Two: Consequences: Politics, Belief And Revolutions From Below -- With Boots Worth 3 Slaves: Slavery And Value In The Eighteenth Century -- On A War Footing: The Fiscal-military State In West African Politics -- Feeding Power: New Societies, New Worldviews -- Transnational Africas, Struggle, And The Rising Of Modernity -- Warrior Aritocracies And Pushback From Below -- Let Them Drink Rum! Islam, Revolution And The Aristocracy. Toby Green. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.