Westminster's Jewel The Barbados Story [Paperback]

WESTMINSTERS JEWEL, is a rare expos? on the history and evolution of Barbadian society, that will captivate both Barbadians (and other Caribbeans) and citizens of the United Kingdom unfamiliar with the history of British colonialism in the Caribbean. The book is an interesting mix of narrative and poetry, done in the authors own elegant  at times caustic style. It presents the Barbados story in an easy, non-academic fashion  from the arrival of the British in 1627 to the present; and offers critical  sometimes biting  commentary on current social norms. In recent times theres been a proliferation in book production by Barbadian writers. These have been largely academic works or narratives about events or personalities in modern Barbadian society. WESTMINSTERS JEWEL is one of the few books that combines local history (in easy reading style) with critical commentary and poetry to tell the story of Barbados from the inception to the present. The Barbadian will discover things about his society he hadnt noticed before; the non-Barbadian will learn about the sordid history of enslavement and colonialism and its legacy on the island. From a jewel in the imperial crown, Barbados, today, is a struggling economy, dependent on tourism and an ever-declining sugar industry. The jewel has lost its sparkle, even as the sun has set on the Empire. The ravages of slavery and colonialism are never far from the eye. But the history of slavery and colonialism has not only left an economic legacy, it has also left a major psychological legacy as well: a people with a woeful lack of self-confidence  who live in the shadows of those who once dominated their lives. Westminsters Jewel seeks to tell that story  the story of Barbados from settlement by the British in 1627 up to the present To the Barbadian itll be an almost unprecedented eye-opener to local history, and a rude awakening to some of the negative features taken for granted about the society. To the BrilC´