The roles of Scots in the British Empire: The case of the Glasgow West India Association

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K03798
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Economic history
• Research Institution: Kansai University
• Principal Investigator: Kumagai Yukiihisa 関西大学, 経済学部, 准教授 (20570253)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-10-21 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: グラスゴー / 西インド貿易 / 砂糖関税 / スコットランド / イギリス帝国

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This research has explored the activities of the Glasgow West India Association (GWIA), which was established by the group of West India merchants and planters of Glasgow. The research results include (1) the GWIA engaged in not only the debates on the abolition of slavery, but also a number of other subjects related to the West India trade,(2) in the debates over the equalization of the duties on West-India and East-India sugars, both the West India interests and the East India interests in Glasgow actively lobbied government officials and politicians, and (3) in the 1830s, the West India interests still held strong influence on the local politics and business community in Glasgow.

Free Research Field

イギリス経済史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

近年のイギリス経済史・帝国史研究に大きな影響を与えた「ジェントルマン資本主義論」においては、帝国内のスコットランドの役割が過少評価されてきた。これに対して、本研究は、19世紀前半のグラスゴーの西インド利害関係者や東インド利害関係者の政府や議会に対するロビー活動を明らかにすることで、スコットランド人のイギリスの通商・帝国政策に対する貢献を主張する。