Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit

Plantation Management in the Colonial Chesapeake, 1607-1763

By Lorena S. Walsh | Publisher: Omohundro Institute and UNC Press

About the book

Lorena Walsh offers an enlightening history of plantation management in the Chesapeake colonies of Virginia and Maryland, ranging from the founding of Jamestown to the close of the Seven Years' War and the end of the “Golden Age” of colonial Chesapeake agriculture.

Walsh focuses on the operation of more than thirty individual plantations and on the decisions that large planters made about how they would run their farms. She argues that, in the mid-seventeenth century, Chesapeake planter elites deliberately chose to embrace slavery. Prior to 1763 the primary reason for large planters' debt was their purchase of capital assets — especially slaves — early in their careers. In the later stages of their careers, chronic indebtedness was rare.

Walsh’s narrative incorporates stories about the planters themselves, including family dynamics and relationships with enslaved workers. Accounts of personal and family fortunes among the privileged minority and the less well documented accounts of the suffering, resistance, and occasional minor victories of the enslaved workers add a personal dimension to more concrete measures of planter success or failure.

Editions of Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit

Hardcover
ISBN 9780807832349
EBook
ISBN 9798890882806
EBook
ISBN 9781469600406
EBook
ISBN 9780807895924
PDF
ISBN 9798890882790

Read an Excerpt

Lorena Walsh offers an enlightening history of plantation management in the Chesapeake colonies of Virginia and Maryland, ranging from the founding of Jamestown to the close of the Seven Years' War and the end of the “Golden Age” of colonial Chesapeake agriculture.

Walsh focuses on the operation of more than thirty individual plantations and on the decisions that large planters made about how they would run their farms. She argues that, in the mid-seventeenth century, Chesapeake planter elites deliberately chose to embrace slavery. Prior to 1763 the primary reason for large planters' debt was their purchase of capital assets — especially slaves — early in their careers. In the later stages of their careers, chronic indebtedness was rare.

Walsh’s narrative incorporates stories about the planters themselves, including family dynamics and relationships with enslaved workers. Accounts of personal and family fortunes among the privileged minority and the less well documented accounts of the suffering, resistance, and occasional minor victories of the enslaved workers add a personal dimension to more concrete measures of planter success or failure.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit about?

Lorena Walsh offers an enlightening history of plantation management in the Chesapeake colonies of Virginia and Maryland, ranging from the founding of Jamestown to the close of the Seven Years' War and the end of the “Golden Age” of colonial Chesapeake agriculture.

Walsh focuses on the operation of more than thirty individual plantations and on the decisions that large planters made about how they would run their farms. She argues that, in the mid-seventeenth century, Chesapeake planter elites deliberately chose to embrace slavery. Prior to 1763 the primary reason for large planters' debt was their purchase of capital assets — especially slaves — early in their careers. In the later stages of their careers, chronic indebtedness was rare.

Walsh’s narrative incorporates stories about the planters themselves, including family dynamics and relationships with enslaved workers. Accounts of personal and family fortunes among the privileged minority and the less well documented accounts of the suffering, resistance, and occasional minor victories of the enslaved workers add a personal dimension to more concrete measures of planter success or failure.

What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit?

History and Archaeology > History > History of the Americas

Where can I read a sample of Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit?

You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9780807832349

How long is Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit and how many pages does it have?

Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit has 736 page(s)

Is Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit part of a series, and can it be read as a standalone?

Yes it is a part of series Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture and the University of North Carolina Press

Who is/are the Author/s of the book Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit?

Lorena S. Walsh

Who is the Publisher of the book Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit?

Omohundro Institute and UNC Press

What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?

Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit is available as hardcover(ISBN 9780807832349) and ebook(ISBN 9798890882806) and ebook(ISBN 9781469600406) and ebook(ISBN 9780807895924) and pdf(ISBN 9798890882790)

Where can I buy Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit online or support local independent bookshops?

You can buy Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit from below

Where can I buy Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit?