The Cambridge History of Africa [Hardcover]

This volume looks at developments in Africa during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.In eight regional chapters the contributors to this volume, all established experts in their field, bring together for the first time developments the whole of Africa in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. A concluding chapter surveys Africa in Europe and the Americas during this period.In eight regional chapters the contributors to this volume, all established experts in their field, bring together for the first time developments the whole of Africa in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. A concluding chapter surveys Africa in Europe and the Americas during this period.The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Africa were a period of transition, with the trade in slaves and firearms on the Atlantic coast laying some of the foundations for European colonialism. But for most of the continent, external forces were still of marginal significance. African initiative remained supreme and produced a rich variety of political, social and intellectual innovations. In eight regional chapters the contributors to this volume, all established experts in their field, bring together for the first time these developments as they affected the whole of Africa. A concluding chapter surveys Africa in Europe and the Americas during this period.List of maps; Preface; Acknowledgements; Introduction Richard Gray; 1. Egypt, the Funj and Darfur P. M. Holt; 2. The central Sahara and Sudan H. J. Fisher; 3. North-West Africa: from the Maghrib to the fringes of the forest Nehemia Levtzion; 4. The Guinea Coast Walter Rodney; 5. Central Africa from Cameroun to the Zambezi David Birmingham; 6. Southern Africa and Madagascar Shula Marks and Richard Gray; 7. Eastern Africa Edward Alpers and Christopher Ehret; 8. Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa M. Abir; 9. Africa in Europe and the Americas Walter Rodney; Bibliographical essays; Bibliography; Index.'The virtues to the book are many: its writers havlÓ[