For centuries, from foodstuffs and fabrics to medicine and industrial materials, plants have dominated trade between countries. Possession of rare spices, sweets, and narcotics could mean enviable wealth and power. In quest of these desired products and the income they brought, explorers ventured forth, risking death as they traveled unknown seas. Here is the story of seven plants--tobacco, sugar, cotton, tea, poppies, quinine, and rubber--and how Europe's hunger for them led to the Age of Empire...and turned world history upside down. Not only did these crops ensure the commercial success of America and Europe, but they became the catalyst for piracy, smuggling, addiction, and the slave trade--the darker side of the golden profits. With fascinating contemporary illustrations.

An Empire of Plants: People and Plants that Changed the World

Children's Books

Musgrave, Toby

Musgrave, Will

Science, Nature & How It Works

Cassell

This is the story of the men who discovered and brought back a wealth of exotic new plants. Journeying through remote and beautiful lands, often in great peril, they collected the plants that shaped western garden design for 200 years. The stories are illustrated with portraits, photographs and maps. The book traces the journeys of 10 of the most significant plant hunters, from the 18th century to the last of the professionals, Frank Kingdon-Ward. It travels with Captain Cook and Sir Joseph Banks to South America, New Zealand and Australia. It treks over 9000 miles across North America with David Douglas, who laid claim to 200 species. It also explores California, South America and South East Asia with the Lobb brothers, and climbs into the Himalaya with Joseph Hooker in search of spectacular rhododendrons. It follows Robert Fortune, as he smuggles tea plants out of China, the foundation of a vast cash crop vital to the development of the Empire. These and other stories vividly bring to life the pioneering work of plant hunters.

The Plant Hunters: Two Hundred Years of Adventure and Discovery Around the World

Gardner, Chris

Biographies & Memoirs

Ward Lock Ltd.

Redland, Cotham & Kingsdown Through Time is a vibrant, historical exploration through a wonderful selection of old and new photographs of the neighbouring suburbs just north of Bristol's city centre. Only 200 years ago, Redland and Cotham were open fields while the Georgian terraces of Kingsdown were beginning to creep up the hill from the medieval heart of old Bristol. In his second title in this series, Bristol-born author and historian Will Musgrave examines the remarkably rapid growth of the area and shows how life has changed for the local residents. The streets, full of small shops, cars, trams and people dressed from a bygone era, and the architectural splendour of the houses, churches and schools are evocatively brought to life.

Redland, Cotham & Kingsdown Through Time

Arts & Photography

Photography & Video

Amberley Publishing

North Somerset has seen great changes in the last two centuries, and this evocative collection of old and new photographs shows how three of the county’s communities, Portishead, Pill and Long Ashton, have altered and grown through time. All three had a close relationship with the old maritime port of Bristol, which shaped their history. As can be seen in these beautifully illustrated pages, many of the streets, shops, houses and workplaces have greatly changed. Sitting on the edge of the Severn Estuary, Portishead was an insignificant North Somerset village in 1811, with a population of just 369. It was transformed over the next 100 years into a popular seaside resort with a busy dock. Today, Portishead has reinvented itself as a cosmopolitan town, complete with a magnificent marina. Dependent on Bristol’s sea trade, Pill has had to adapt to the closure of Bristol’s docks, while Long Ashton has grown from a rural outpost into a prosperous village.

Portishead & Around Through Time

They traveled the wide world, searching for new flowers, shrubs, and other botanical wonders to bring back home -- and only because of the courage and passion of daring explorers can today's gardens boast of such a diverse array of plants. The nine plant hunters -- including Joseph Banks (1743-1820), Joseph Hooker (1817-1911), and George Forrest (1873-1922) -- featured in this handsomely illustrated and adventure-filled volume dedicated themselves to expanding our knowledge of botany and horticulture. From the shores of South America, New Zealand, and Australia to the top of the Himalayas, these men often risked their lives collecting tens of thousands of new species over a period of two centuries -- and every garden benefits from their legacy.

The Plant Hunters

Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Gardening & Landscape Design

Seven Dials

For centuries, from foodstuffs to industrial materials, plants have dominated trade between countries. Possession of rare spices, sweets, and narcotics could meand enviable wealth and power, so explorers ventured forth, risking death on unknown seas. Here are stories of seven plants--tobacco, sugar, cotton, tea, poppies, quinine, and rubber--and how Europe's hunger for them led to the Age of Empire and turned world history upside down. Not only did these crops ensure the commercial success of America and Europe, but they became the catalyst foasr piracy, smuggling, addiction, and the slave trade: the darker side of the golden profits. A beautiful presentation of a fascinating subject.

An Empire of Plants: People and Plants That Changed the World

History

UNKNO

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Books by Musgrave, Will