A new interpretation of the past five hundred years of human history examines how the transfer of quinine, sugar, tea, cotton, and the potato from their native habitats to new settings have changed the world

Seeds of Change: Five Plants That Transformed Mankind

Hobhouse, Henry

Science & Math

Harpercollins

Seeds of Wealth: Four Plants That Made Men Rich

Seeds of Wealth: Four plants that made men rich

Business & Money

Economics

Macmillan

The argument of this book is that three natural forces appear to lie behind most of the long-term trends of history, ie population growth, food supply and disease. Together they form a self-balancing triangle and their influence is traced from the Black Death in the 15th century, to the Portuguese and Spanish explorations, to the rise of the Dutch and English, through Western European triumphalism in their colonies and successor states, to the "One World" in which we live today. The author suggests that history has been driven by these forces, rather than by man's will.

Forces of change: Why we are the way we are now

Politics & Social Sciences

Social Sciences

SIDGWICK JACKSON

In Seeds of Change, Henry Hobhouse takes six commercial plants - sugar, tea, cotton, the potato, quinine and the coca plant - and shows how man's need, or greed, for these products has changed the face of history and shaped destinies. A fascinating and highly original interpretation of large areas of history, it argues that these commodities have had a more profound impact on the world than most wars, battles and revolutions. Henry Hobhouse has expanded this edition to include the coca plant, tracing its enormous social and economic impact throughout the world. This is an important addition not only to Seeds of Change but also to our understanding of modern culture.

Seeds of Change: Six Plants That Transformed Mankind

Sports & Outdoors

MACMILLAN PUB. LTD.

Henry Hobhouse's new book deals with the effect of plants on humans and their past. But this new book, Seeds of Wealth, tells the story of four plants that made men rich, and how these plants inadvertently changed the course of history. The four crops Hobhouse has chosen are timber, the wine grape, rubber and tobacco. These four were not picked out of a hat; their cultivation and consumption has had a profound and enduring effect on the world in general and, specifically, on those who grew or traded their fruits.

The Parliamentary Elections (Corrupt and Illegal Practices) Act, 1883. Ed., with an Introduction and Full Explanatory and Legal Notes

History

Nabu Press

Argues that the modern world has been shaped far more by the forces of population growth, food supply, and disease than by any conscious action of humankind, demonstrating the interaction and interdependence of these three forces

Forces of Change: An Unorthodox View of History

Historical Study & Educational Resources

Arcade Pub

Following the widely celebrated Seeds of Change (1985) comes Seeds of Wealth, a collection of four elegant essays focusing on the economic and cultural consequences of the exploitation of timber, tobacco, rubber, and the wine grape. These cash crops have bound together trade relations for the past three centuries and have had a profound if little noted effect on our world. As early as Shakespeare’s time, timber quantities in England had become deficient, promoting the use of coal and leading to the industrial revolution. Conversely, the abundance of timber and excellent growing conditions for tobacco in the United States led to great wealth and power for the young nation. The cultivation of the rubber tree and its importance in modern society helped to create the nations of Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. And good wine, Hobhouse observes, makes people wealthy as well as mellow and wise. These four plants enormously increased the wealth of those who dealt with them, created new industries, shaped destinies, and changed the course of history.

Counterpoint

A personal and highly original take on the history of six commercial plants, Seeds of Change illuminates how sugar, tea, cotton, the potato, quinine, and the cocoa plant have shaped our past. In this fascinating account, the impassioned Henry Hobhouse explains the consequences of these plants with attention-grabbing historical moments. While most records of history focus on human influence, Hobhouse emphasizes how plants too are a central and influential factor in the historical process. Seeds of Change is a captivating and invaluable addition to our understanding of modern culture.

There are few books that have the insight and power to change the way we think. Forces of Change is one. In this updated edition, Henry Hobhouse argues provocatively, and most convincingly, that modern history has been shaped less by the actions of human beings than by three natural forces: population growth, food supply, and disease. Together they form a self-balancing triangle: any change in the dimension of one side, Hobhouse shows, is and must be matched by changes in one or both of the other sides. Using key examples from the history of the past five hundred years, the author opens our eyes to new possibilities, so that history as learned from our textbooks takes on a whole new light. As original as it is ambitious, Forces of Change examines history from the time of the Black Plague to the present day, observing in each period and historical situation the relative roles of the three sides of the triangle. The result is a work that is revealing, eloquent, and—despite the seriousness of the subject—always witty and eminently readable.

Catapult

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Hobhouse, Henry. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Hobhouse, Henry

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Hobhouse, Henry. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Seeds of Change: Five Plants That Transformed Mankind

Seeds of Wealth: Four plants that made men rich

Forces of change: Why we are the way we are now

Seeds of Change: Six Plants That Transformed Mankind

Seeds of Wealth: Four Plants That Made Men Rich

The Parliamentary Elections (Corrupt and Illegal Practices) Act, 1883. Ed., with an Introduction and Full Explanatory and Legal Notes

Forces of Change: An Unorthodox View of History

Seeds of Wealth: Four Plants That Made Men Rich

Seeds of Change: Six Plants That Transformed Mankind

Forces of Change: An Unorthodox View of History