Giles Milton

Popular history about the first 60 years of the honourable East India Company, focusing on the Dutch-English conflict over supremacy in the spice trade originating from the Banda islands.

The title is a misnomer. The said Nathaniel (Courthope) only played a minor (and ineffectual, albeit heroic) role in the struggle over Run island (one of the smallest of the six Banda spice islands). In the end the writer makes a plea for celebrating Nathaniel for his heroic, but futile, resistance to Dutch show more supremacy over Run island and its inhabitants, because ultimately an exchange was agreed between New Amsterdam (present-day New York) and Run island. This exchange supposedly gave the British the better end of the deal (if we ignore the subsequent American war of Independence and loss of British suzerainty over their American colonies). This is a typical case of imposing logics that only make sense with hindsight, but hardly influenced the exchange at the time.

Moreover, Milton presents Nathaniel’s struggle as one of British loftiness over crude Dutch extractionism – civilization over suppression. While such a view is refreshing, when contrasted with the dominant narrative on the Dutch East India Company (VOC), it is equally misleading – the British Empire was hardly less dominating or extractionist than its Dutch version. And ultimately New York and its inhabitants rose against British Imperialism in the name of freedom and civilization. So in the long run Milton’s argument backfires.

Yet, the fact that Courthope struck a reasonable deal with the inhabitants of Run stands. What we do not know, but can reasonably suppose, is that the more inclusive and autonomous aspects of that deal would have fallen victim to the God of colonial Greed in the long run.

What I ultimately take from this book, is a better understanding of the initial failure of the East India Company, which almost ceased to exist in 1657 (one hundred years before the unexpected British victory at Plassey, Bengal, which secured the ascent of the British Raj). Ultimately it was the backing of King Charles II and an extension of the mandate of the East India Company, to include local rule, military empowerment and the use of force, that explain its success after 1657 (one could argue that the British finally managed to copy the lethal mix of powers that made the Dutch East India Company so successful). In light of these changes, one may wonder whether the inhabitants of Run would have been better off under British rule. Milton avoids such painful, reflective questions. Rather than probing the viciousness of both the Dutch and British colonial projects, Milton prefers a gung-ho, white-supremacist adventure narrative. Go and read Amitav Ghosh for a very different narrative on the Nutmeg’s curse! show less

The title of this is somewhat misleading; it's not simply Nathaniel Courthope's story, but that of various men over a century who fought and died over islands that don't even garner a mention on most contemporary maps.

The tiny island of Run is in the Indonesian archipelago. Five hundred years ago, that small cluster of volcanic islands was the only place in the world where one could find clover and nutmeg. And everyone wanted it - the Spanish, the Portuguese, the Dutch and the English, show more though the last two were the greatest foes. In this fascinating story, Milton describes the incredible effort it took to make it to Run and its neighboring islands. Thousands of lives were lost just in the journey. Shipwrecks, dysentery, piracy. Starving sailors would land on islands and gorge on scared cows, only to be slaughtered by mobs of horrified villagers who believed the cows held the spirits of deceased ancestors. When the Dutch finally gained control and brutally subjugated the native population of the islands, the English still persisted in their claim for spices. War ensued. Brutality was undeniable on both sides, but Nathaniel Courthope's valiant stand on the island of Run made the English claim seem justified. The end result of this conflict: a simple trade of the wealthy island of Run for a scarcely-settled island in America named Manhattan.

This book was enlightening. I have nutmeg in my kitchen cupboard and took it for granted. It costs what, $3? I've read about the Spice Wars, but knew nothing about the specifics or the sacrifices involved. It made me feel sad at times. People really should know about these things. As much as I enjoyed Nathaniel's Nutmeg, it was a very slow read and took almost a week for me to get through. I am glad I read it, though. Many thanks to the person who reviewed it on 50bookchallenge in 2008 and brought it to my attention. show less

Devastating account of one of the worst tragedies of the 20th century--the complete destruction of Smyrna in the last three weeks of September, 1922, [Izmir in today's Turkey]. It was burnt to the ground. Most of its 19th and 20th century history was reported by and has come down to us from the Levantines, the wealthy upper class of Europeans. Smyrna was a completely religiously tolerant city in the Ottoman Empire, with a Christian majority, although the mayor was a Muslim, Rahmi Bey. During show more the Great War and until he was replaced he bent over backward trying to protect ALL his citizens from the horrors.

The British Lloyd George was unabashedly pro-Greek and supported Eleftherios Venizelos in his "Megali ["Great"] Idea" of an expanded Greece--Greece AND the part of Asia Minor, including Smyrna. Fighting between Greeks and Turks ended in a Turkish victory under Mustafa Kemal [not yet termed Ataturk] and the flight of the Greek army back to their country. Other cities and villages were devastated by both armies; both were villains here. Then the Turkish army entered Smyrna; the population for the most part fled in the face of looting, killing, rape, then finally arson that destroyed the non-Turkish quarters. The Allies were apathetic. The "Paradise" of the title was the American section of the city. Today Izmir is a shadow of its former self.

This book was a revelation; I hadn't known much about this period in history. The author appeared to be even-handed; there was enough blame to go around. A cautionary tale: it showed what can happen when a third party [who has no business influencing events] insinuates itself into the affairs of another country and how things can go terribly wrong--does that sound familiar, considering today's events in the Middle East? Two heroic men revealed themselves: Rahmi Bey, who tried to protect the Christians in his city and Asa Jennings, the American Methodist minister who mostly through bluff was instrumental in rescuing a large number of refugees, who had lost everything. He was latter decorated by the Greek government. I felt the most interesting parts were the first 50 pp. or so where everything was set up, then the last part detailing what happened day by day in Smyrna, along with the aftermath. Newspaper reports were fascinating. I enjoyed the personal accounts of some folks lucky and fast-thinking enough to escape--the Armenian doctor; the Armenian family; and even Aristotle Onassis, who I never realized was a Smyrniot. I also recommend a historical novel set in this period, The Ghosts of Smyrna by Loren Edizel.

Recommended. show less

Flies, flies, and more flies and they were all fat. The city had no cats, dogs, or birds. They had all been eaten by the starving inhabitants. Such was the way one British observer described the city upon entering Berlin. It was a scene straight out of Hieronymous Bosch with destruction on a massive scale, dead bodies everywhere, and anything that had survived ripped off, literally, by Soviet troops who had arrived first to cart everything east. Fanatical Nazis, following Hitler's final show more orders to destroy everything, had done their work well, too.

The Soviets were a problem from the beginning, never willing to compromise, and dismantling everything they could lay their hands on to be shipped back to Russia. There was conflict between Lucius Clay, the brilliant logistician who had never experienced combat, but who kept the troops supplied with what they needed, and Frank Hawley, general in charge of the American sector of Berlin who didn't trust the Russians. Clay knew they had to figure out a way to get along with the Soviets. He also realized the importance of resurrecting German industry rather than destroying it. It was the only way to keep people fed, not to mention it was important for U.S. industry as a consumer of U.S. goods.

The Russians were, then as now, masters of misinformation and sowing mistrust among the allies, deviously spreading lies about each other and other falsities. Those who were surprised by Russian manipulation of American social media during recent elections should not have been. They have many decades of experience. They revealed their distaste for fair play in one anecdote. All the allied leaders were invited to a boar hunt, an invitation that was accepted by all with pleasure. They were surprised when the Russians arrived with submachine guns instead of rifles. When the boars came out of the woods, the Russians opened up with a fusillade that had all everyone else hitting the ground to avoid bullets that were flying everywhere. When the shooting stopped a mass of dead boar lay in front of them having been slaughtered by the massive firepower. That was emblematic of Russian tactics.

That first winter was the coldest on record, and the suffering of Germans and refugees was terrible. Meanwhile, the winners were living in splendor and unimaginable comfort. They requisitioned beautiful mansions, had access to the riches of the PX, and had plenty of servants. The Black Market made many rich, and virtually anything could be had for a few cigarettes which had become the de facto currency. The disparity between the conquerors and the people was a worry to some as they feared that unless the allies could get German industry and society back on its feet that Communism, which on its face lacked the same disparities, would become more appealing. The Allies won a stunning election victory in the first election as the allies merely posted signs reminding Germans of the vicious reprisals taken by the Russians. But people can be fickle and tend to follow food rather than politics, so providing sustenance became a priority.

Ironies abound. The Soviets themselves should have realized how people can come together to survive sieges; they had their own Leningrad and Stalingrad examples before them. Had Stalin not unleashed the fury of Russian troops to wreck havoc on Berliners by Russian troops, they might have been far less fearful of Soviet domination. Traffic between East and West Berlin remained open during the airlift, which was instituted in 1948 ( a magnificent logistical feat) , the catch being that Westerners crossing the checkpoints had to register with the Soviet authorities thus placing them under Soviet control. So even though they could get food on the Eastern side, few people crossed to risk Soviet control. Electricity was a huge problem. 80% of electricity generators were in the Eastern sector, so that was severely rationed in the West. Since water had to be pumped from deep wells, it had to be rationed as well.

One high placed U.S. official remarked of the crisis, "One wrong foot now, and it's World War III." I could write a lot more. Loved this book. show less