Caribean History
Grade ( A and B)
30th April 2025
Teacher: Samantha Clarke
CARIBBEAN ECONOMY AND SLAVERY
The Economic Revolution
The Sugar Revolution
Definition: A rapid change from tobacco to sugar as the basic cash crop
that occurred in the mid-to-late 17th century in the British and French West
Indians islands. The sugar revolution brought great social, economic and
political changes to the islands it occurred in. It is most drastically seen in
the history of Barbados where it occurred roughly in one decade (1640-
1650).
Causes of the Sugar Revolution:
1. For a long time, tobacco from the West Indies had been preferred.
However, by the 17c., tobacco from the West Indies was facing competition
from tobacco from Virginia in North America, which was superior in quality
and quantity.
2. There was an increasing demand for sugar in Europe to be used as a
sweetener for teas and other beverages.
3. The Caribbean islands had favourable climatic conditions on which sugar
could be grown.
4. There was a glut on the market so the price of tobacco fell.
Social changes:
1. The black population increased with the importation of African slaves
to produce sugar.
2. The white population decreased as the whites returned to Europe or
moved onto other islands because they did not want to work alongside
the blacks.
3. Society changed from a free citizenry to a slave society as the Africans
were enslaved on the plantations and the small number of whites ruled
society. ‘’Free’’ meant ‘’white’’’ and ‘’slave’’ meant ‘’black’’.
4. Absenteeism (practice of owning land in one country but living in
another) became a feature of West Indian society as planters owned
plantations in the West Indies but lived in Europe.
Economic changes:
1. The price of land inflated as there was an increasing demand for
land.
2. The number of landholders decreased. Small land owners were put
out of business and small plots of land could not accommodate the
amount of sugarcane necessary. Many small holdings were grouped
together into large estates, under the ownership of a rich planter.
3. The number of landholdings increased as sugar could only be grown
economically on large estates.
4. Monoculture (the concentration on the cultivation of a single crop)
became the backbone of the Caribbean economy as sugar became
the main crop that was relied upon. This was a dangerous
foundation for the Caribbean economy which would eventually lead
to much distress.
Political changes:
The Proprietorship System of Government was replaced by The Old
Representative System of Government. The Old Representative System of
Government had a Governor and an Assembly. Barbados had its assembly
set up in 1639. This was the first Assembly to be established in the West
Indies. The planter-class ruled the assembly and made the decisions as they
held many seats.
It is said that the Dutch made the West Indies ‘’black’’ as they provided the
labourers from Africa and put up the capital needed by the planters to set up
production.
Change from Logwood to Mahogany
Logwood was the first major timber export from the Caribbean and was
produced mainly in Belize. It was very valuable for its dye, which was used
by wood manufacturers. Spanish ships carrying logwood were often attacked
by British pirates, who stole the cargo and resold it. However, the
buccaneers soon decided that cutting the logwood trees themselves was an
easier way and safer way to make a profit. These new producers caused a
glut on the market. This resulted in falling prices in the 1760s and so
mahogany replaced logwood as Belize’s main wood export. Since mahogany
wood was harder than logwood, the economy of Belize (renamed British
Honduras after it was colonized by Britain) changed drastically. Logwood was
a small tree which required only a few men to cut it.
Slavery started in Belize in 1724 but there were relatively few Africans until
the 1770s after which the number of Africans expanded to more than three
quarters of the population of about 5 000 people. Mahogany production
created new jobs, e.g, as huntsmen, the axe men and cattle men and these
jobs were done by skilled slaves. The huntsmen went into the forest to find
mahogany trees, the axe men did the chopping and trimming of the trees,
and the cattle men took care of the animals used to transport the logs. These
enslaved men, their masters and overseers had to cover long distances to
find the trees, which did not grow in clumps like the logwood but were
located singly and often far apart. This meant that sites were temporary and
that enslaved men were away from their families for long period of time so
logging had to be seasonal. After the logging season ended, families were
reunited and celebrations took place at the community festivals where the
enslaved interacted with each other. This interaction among the enslaved
created a new Belizean creole culture.
Tobago and British Guiana are other territories which experienced the
changeover from logwood to mahogany
Questions
1. Give three reasons for, the change from tobacco to
sugar
production.
2. Explain the role of the Dutch in the development of the
sugar
industry in the Caribbean.
3. Explain three ways in which the sugar revolution
impacted on
the Caribbean and Its urban centres.
