Year of examination: 2023 Subject: Caribbean History Candidate number: Candidate Name: Samir Baptiste Title: To what extent is it safe that the sugar revolution In the English-speaking Caribbean during the 17th century was indeed a revolution Teacher: Ms.A. Gellizeau Acknowledgments First, I would like to thank the almighty father for providing me with the strength, patience, and wisdom needed to complete this SBA. Second, I would like to express my gratitude to my amazing teacher. Ms.Gellizeau For her hard work and dedication but also for guiding us on this journey, and third. I would like to thank everyone who helped and contributed in any way. Table of Contents Acknowledgments 2 Rationale For my topic of research, I have chosen to focus on the topic of the sugar revolution. I chose this topic because it has always captivated my interest, mostly because it feeds my desire to learn new things. I wanted to know why there was a changeover from tobacco to sugar and I was intrigued on how the Dutch contributed to the sugar revolution. This research would help benefit future history students by serving as a sample to know what to do. This research would also benefit me by assisting me in expanding my knowledge and obtaining specific information on the Topic The Sugar Revolution. Introduction In the seventeenth century both in the English and to a less extent in the French Islands, a change occurred in the basic cash crop .This Change was so rapid and far- reaching that ‘revolutionary ’ is a fitting word to describe it . It ranks in importance with emancipation, for the changed the lesser Antilles completely. It was not just that sugar replaced tobacco as the chief crop. According to Amerindians to African (Dyde, Greenwood and Hamber, page 104) stated that The population changed from white to black; the size of landholdings changed ; and eventually the West Indies became ‘ the cockpit of Europe ’. The list of changes the sugar revolution brought is inexhaustible .revolution is a radical change in the established order, usually the established government and social institutions. Causes of the sugar revolution Fall in west Indian tobacco prices Amerindians to Africans (Dyde, Greenwood and Hamber, page number) stated that “the forces which brought about the change from tobacco to sugar all came together about 1640.” Tobacco, the crop of which the economy of the lesser Antilles was founded, started to decline as a result of competition from Virginia tobacco. John Rolfe, an early settler of America, moved to the colony of Virginia and introduced the cultivation of tobacco to Virginia. Amerindians to Africans (Dyde, Greenwood and Hamber, page number) stated that A Variety imported from Trinidad proved very satisfactory. It is ironic that a variety from the West indies should be the source of the decline of the West Indian tobacco crop! By 1627 Virginia was able to ship nearly 500 000 ibs (226 800 kg ) of tobacco to England in one year . In 1628 the total got St Kitts and Barbados was only 100 000 ibs (45 360 kg ). Virginia not only had the advantage of size , enabling individual plots to be about 50 acres (20 ha) compared with about 10 acres (4 ha ) in the west indies, but also of quality. As the demand for tobacco in England increased , Virginia was able to meet it easily, but the demand for West Indian tobacco fell because expansion output was not so rapid and the quality was inferior. Increasing Demand for sugar Sugar came along at the right time to take the place of tobacco. There was a rise in demand for sugar. Sugar was already being used for sweets and baked goods, but it was demanded even more as a sweetener for coffee and tea which were becoming popular in Europe. After the colonisation of India and the Far East, coffee and tea were becoming increasingly popular in Europe and hence the demand for sugar as a sweetener for these drinks. The West Indies provided the perfect climate for the production of sugar cane. Part played by the Dutch in the sugar revolution The Dutch contribution was so great that we can say that they made the change possible. About 1640 the Dutch were the greatest traders in the Caribbean region , almost having a monopoly of the carrying trade. The Dutch traders and captains were looking for ways by which to increase their trade and they saw that encouraging the plantation of sugar was a great opportunity. Sugar needed capital which the small planters of the eastern Caribbean did not have, but the Dutch came to the rescue by supplying credit . A Dutch merchant would put up the capital on the security of the crop. In this way many planters started . The Dutch took over the export and sale of the crop . In return for providing the initial capital. Not only highly specialized labour, but also the ordinary manual labour was provided by the Dutch as the slave trade was in their hands .The Dutch brought slaves from west Africa to the west indies at the rate of almost 3000 per year. It has been said that the Dutch made the West Indies black . At least they started off the process which led to the decline in the white population and a meteoric rise in the black. Population change The introduction of a great number of African slaves changed the population structure in the islands because there were then more blacks than whites. Blacks far outnumbered whites, in some cases the ratio was as much as 25:1.This also caused the emergence of different social classes. This sba appears to investigate the sugar revolution's social, political, and economic consequences. Impacts of the sugar revolution The Social Effect Social stratification The population of the Caribbean islands was divided into three groups. At the top were the whites, in the middle were the mixed race and free Africans and the bottom were the enslaved Africans. However, there are status divisions within these groups: among the whites for example, status was determined largely by occupation. Whites were divided along status lines based on wealth. In the British colonies these were called “principal whites ” and “poor whites.”In reality they formed three ranks. At the top, forming an elite, were families who owned slaves and successful plantations . The social organizations of Caribbean slave society . The Political Effects The cultivation of sugar increased the wealth obtained. from the British West Indies. This resulted in a change in the system of governing the colonies. From their control a show there was a show of financial gain therefore. bringing the island under more direct control. The Islands were reviewed. highly by the Metropolitan countries and became pawns whenever tr.ties were agreed. Laws such as the Navigation Acts (designed to regular colonial trade and enable England to collect taxes in the colonies) and the Mercantile System (a system of managing the economics of a country through the regulation of its foreign trade) were instituted to achieve better control of the colonies. The whites often used their political power, or in some cases their access to political comportment, dress, and residence, denying blacks the right to practice certain professions, or limiting the material legacy of individual free black. The franchise (right to vote) was granted only to those who owned a certain amount of land. The whites were the only ones then with the right to vote and they ultimately controlled the House of Assembly. The Economic Effect Monoculture In the Caribbean Island the sugar revolution led to Monoculture.Monoculture is the concentration on the cultivation of crops Many of the planters attention was focused on the sugar cane as a result this had led to low supplies of the foodstuff for the colonies . Absenteeism The sugar revolution was also responsible for the introduction of the practice of absenteeism into West Indian life . The Sugar revolution was so successful it resulted In the plantation owners returning to England to love Lavishly and let someone else manage the plantation in their absence. Increase in land prices The price of land increased in the west indies as a result of the profitability of growing sugar cane . The price of land increased as the sugar cane required large plots of land and there was need for space for having the mills , boiling house etc . Conclusion To concluded there is evidence suggesting that the British West Indies were significantly impacted by the sugar revolution of the 1640s. The researcher had divided these in 3 group social, political, and economic Bibliography R. Greenwood, B. Dyde , S. Hamber. Amerindians to Africans.3rd edition, Publisher, 2008. Websites https://blablawriting.net/the-sugar-revolution-essay https://www.studocu.com/en-us/document/houston-community-college/us-history/effects-of-thesugar-revolution/7874631
