The Contest for the Delaware Valley: Allegiance, Identity, and Empire in the Seventeenth Century
- ISBN-10
- 0807150614
- ISBN-13
- 9780807150610
- Category
- Delaware River Valley (N.Y.-Del. and N.J.)
- Pages
- 265
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2013
- Authors
- Mark L. Thompson, Former Professor of Law and Senior Pro-Vice Chancellor Mark Thompson
Description
In the first major examination of the diverse European efforts to colonize the Delaware Valley, Mark L. Thompson offers a bold new interpretation of ethnic and national identities in colonial America. For most of the seventeenth century, the lower Delaware Valley remained a marginal area under no state s complete control. English, Dutch, and Swedish colonizers all staked claims to the territory, but none could exclude their rivals for long in part because Native Americans in the region encouraged the competition. Officials and settlers alike struggled to determine which European nation would possess the territory and what liberties settlers would keep after their own colonies had surrendered. The resulting struggle for power resonated on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. While the rivalry promoted patriots who trumpeted loyalties to their sovereigns and nations, it also rewarded cosmopolitans who struck deals across imperial, colonial, and ethnic boundaries. Just as often it produced men such as Henry Hudson, Willem Usselincx, Peter Minuit, and William Penn who did both. Ultimately, The Contest for the Delaware Valley shows how colonists, officials, and Native Americans acted and reacted in inventive, surprising ways. Thompson demonstrates that even as colonial spokesmen debated claims and asserted fixed national identities, their allegiances along with the settlers often shifted and changed. Yet colonial competition imposed limits on this fluidity, forcing officials and settlers to choose a side. Offering their allegiances in return for security and freedom, colonial subjects turned loyalty into liberty.
Get the book
Other editions
-
- 2013-06-03
- 280 pages
- Paperback
- LSU Press
-
- 2013-06-03
- 280 pages
- Ebook
- LSU Press
Similar books
-
Washington's Crossing
By David Hackett FischerProvides an account of a pivotal moment in American history--the Christmas night crossing of the Delaware River to mount a sneak attack on British and Hessian troops at Trenton, New Jersey.
-
The Crossing: How George Washington Saved the American Revolution
By Jim MurphyIn this breathtaking account of a pivotal time in the American Revolution, two-time Newbery Honor Book author Jim Murphy allows us to experience George Washington's transformation from an indecisive leader into a brilliant and confident ...
-
Philadelphia Trees: A Field Guide to the City and the Surrounding Delaware Valley
By Paul William Meyer, Edward Sibley Barnard, Catriona BrigerUsing this field guide, nature lovers will be able to identify the fantastic trees that this region has to offer.