62. When Slaves Fought for the British Empire

In 'Edge of Empire', Maya Jasanoff explores the British Empire's expansion in India and Egypt from 1750 to 1850 by focusing on the lives of collectors who lived on its frontiers. The book delves into how these individuals used collecting to forge their identities and navigate cross-cultural interactions, revealing the complexities of imperial power and culture. Jasanoff's narrative offers a nuanced view of empire, highlighting both the grand narratives of conquest and the personal stories of those involved.

This book tells the story of the sixty thousand Americans loyal to the British cause who fled the United States at the end of the American Revolution. Through detailed individual and family narratives, Maya Jasanoff traces the extraordinary journeys of these refugees as they settled in Canada, the Caribbean, Sierra Leone, and other parts of the British Empire. The book highlights the experiences of individuals such as Elizabeth Johnston, David George, and Joseph Brant, and provides a provocative analysis that reevaluates the legacies of the revolution's 'losers'. Jasanoff's work combines broad global surveys with intimate narrative history, offering a new perspective on the founding of the United States and the post-revolutionary world.