Title Indentured servitude : unfree labour and citizenship in the British colonies / Anna Suranyi

Published Montreal ; Kingston ; London ; Chicago : McGill-Queen's University Press, [2021] ©2021

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Description 1 online resource (xiv, 278 pages) : illustrations Series States, people, and the history of social change ; 4 States, people, and the history of social change ; 4. Contents 1 Introduction -- 2 Justifications of Servitude -- 3 The Political Economy of Indenture -- 4 Contracts and Rights -- 5 Living in Servitude -- 6 Women in Indentured Servitude -- 7 Indentured Children -- 8 Resistance to Servitude -- 9 After Indenture Summary "Hundreds of thousands of British and Irish men, women, and children crossed the Atlantic during the seventeenth century as indentured servants. Many had agreed to serve for four years, but large numbers had been trafficked or "spirited away" or were sent forcibly by government agencies as criminals, political rebels, or destitute vagrants. In Indentured Servitude Anna Suranyi provides new insight into the lives of these people. The British government, Suranyi argues, profited by supplying labour for the colonies, removing unwanted populations, and reducing incarceration costs within Britain. In addition, it was believed that indigents, especially destitute children, benefited morally from being placed in indenture. Capitalist entrepreneurs who were influential at the highest levels of government made their fortunes from Atlantic trade in goods, indentured servants, and slaves, and their participation in the servant trade contributed to the commercialization of criminal justice. Suranyi breaks new ground in showing how indentured servitude was challenged: once in the colonies, indentured servants adapted resourcefully to their circumstances and rebelled against unfair conditions and abuse by suing their masters, by running away, or through outright revolt. Emerging ideas about race and citizenship led to vehement public debate about the conditions of indentured servants and the ethics of indenture itself, prompting legislation that aimed to curb the worst excesses while slavery continued to expand unchecked."-- Provided by publisher Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index Notes Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on June 03, 2021) Subject Indentured servants -- Great Britain -- History -- 17th century Indentured servants -- Great Britain -- Social conditions -- 17th century Contract labor -- Great Britain -- History -- 17th century Slave labor -- Great Britain -- History -- 17th century HISTORY / Social History Contract labor Indentured servants Slave labor Great Britain Genre/Form History Form Electronic book ISBN 9780228007791 0228007798 9780228007784 022800778X

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