Nathaniel's Nutmeg: How One Man's Courage Changed the Course of History

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Over all the Spice Islands, Run was the most coveted – covered as it was from one end to the other with Nutmeg trees; trees that would grow nowhere else. Thought to have the power to cure everything from the plague to flatulence to the common cold, nutmeg was "the most coveted luxury in seventeenth-century Europe, a spice held to have such medicinal properties that men would risk their lives to acquire it. On 25 December 1616, he landed his ships, Swan and Defence, on the island known as Run, the smallest (about 2 by 2. What we saw running amok in the shadowy corners of the world was two imperial powers vying for conquest. His nonfiction books include Nathaniel's Nutmeg, Big Chief Elizabeth, Samurai William, The Riddle and the Knight, White Gold, Paradise Lost, Wolfram, Russian Roulette, Fascinating Footnotes from History.

GILES MILTON About — GILES MILTON

After losing his two ships to mutiny and sinking by the Dutch, he fortified the island by erecting forts to overlook approaches from the east. In the early 1600s, spices like nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and pepper were far more valuable than any cinnamon-tasty Apple Jacks consumer would believe. The British defeat at the hands of the Dutch was resolved by Run going to the Dutch and Manhattan (which had been colonized by the Dutch West India Company) going to the British; setting in motion a chain of events that would lead to the establishment of the greatest city the world has ever known. The English departed without a struggle shortly after Courthope's death and their local allies - who considered themselves to be under His Majesty's reign - were being oppressed.October 20, 1620) (sometimes written Courthopp) was an English East India Company officer [1] involved in the wars with the Dutch over the spice trade. Such was the popularity of nutmeg well into the 18th Century that Dickens carried around a monogrammed nutmeg grater in his waistcoat.

Nutmeg (The Diary of Samuel Pepys) Nutmeg (The Diary of Samuel Pepys)

During the Renaissance, nutmeg was still considered a preventive medicine by Western medical authorities but its properties were usually used to treat memory loss, dizziness and blood in the urine. This is the story of pre-enlightenment mischief sanctioned by absolute rulers for the enrichment of a few. At that time Nutmeg was thought to cure the plague; and was the most valuable commodity in the world. Thanks to Courthope's defence of the island however, Britain was able to barter its legal title to the island of Run with the Dutch, for another island by the name of Manhattan. The English may have been thugs and pirates but at least the natives, when they had a choice, preferred us to the Dutch.

He is also the author of three novels, The Perfect Corpse, According to Arnoldand Edward Trencom's Nose. You don't hole up on an island against a superior fleet, with no natural water sources (he and his men had to drink their supplies with clenched teeth to keep the fauna out) and nothing to eat but sago without a good deal of the right stuff. Despite numerous letters from the Company's directors allowing Courthope to leave his post, and even awarding him repeatedly for his efforts, he never gave in.

Nathaniel Courthope - Wikipedia

Giles Milton doesn't make too much of a fuss about it, but we are talking about momentous history being decided here. It's a spice, once rare and expensive, over which several minor wars were fought between competing countries (Venice, Genoa, the Netherlands, Portugal and England). Even after the fleet of Sir Thomas Dale sent from England to Run had been defeated by the Dutch governor of the archipelago, Jan Pieterszoon Coen, the decision never changed.In some places it was hard to read; not because the prose is cumbersome (the book flows well) but simply because it is difficult to imagine that people would do such unspeakable things to each other simply for a few pounds of nutmeg or mace. Nevertheless, for much of the 16 th and 17 th centuries this tiny atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean captivated the popular imagination and inspired the imperial avarice of the four great powers of that period. Days can pass without unearthing anything of interest: I liken it to those metal-detecting treasure-hunters of North Carolina who scour the Outer Banks in the hope of turning up a Jacobean shilling or signet ring.