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A review by mike_baker
Nathaniel's Nutmeg by Giles Milton
4.0
The title's a misnomer. Nathaniel Courthorpe represents something of a footnote in the history of the Spice Wars, as heroic as his actions were. The events leading to his futile and brave defence of the nutmeg-bearing island of Run are terrific, told in breathless, 'boys own' adventurous passages as the history of attempts to reach East Asia from Europe is outlined in some detail. The journey, perilously undertaken by contemporary ships across vast and often forbidding oceans, was not for the faint-hearted. Your chances of making it across alive were slim, the reward for doing so less than guaranteed, the sheer human effort involved a mixture of greedy ambition and derring-do lunacy.
However, the consequences of the Spice Wars - a more or less forgotten chapter in the annals of European empire building - were far reaching, and it's these that make the book so worth reading. Of the two combatants involved, the Netherlands claimed the Spice Islands. England traded in its stake and was handed Manhattan Island as compensation. The story in reaching this momentous point in history is covered here in full, and it's a good one.
However, the consequences of the Spice Wars - a more or less forgotten chapter in the annals of European empire building - were far reaching, and it's these that make the book so worth reading. Of the two combatants involved, the Netherlands claimed the Spice Islands. England traded in its stake and was handed Manhattan Island as compensation. The story in reaching this momentous point in history is covered here in full, and it's a good one.