From equals to enslaved

It was German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel who once claimed that the continent of Africa was “no historical part of the world; it has no movement or development to exhibit”. This dismissal of the contribution of this entire region to the history of the globe is patently ridiculous, and yet for many the history of this continent is largely a blank space in time.

In his new Wolfson History Prize-nominated book, A Fistful Of Shells, Toby Green focuses on the history of West Africa in the same way that so many historians might have previously written about the history of Western Europe. His broad investigation into the economic and social changes that took place from the before the Atlantic slave trade to the age of revolution delves back in time to reveal truths about the rich and diverse nature of events in