Breeds of Empire: The Invention of the Horse in Southeast Asia and Southern Africa 1500-1950 (NIAS Studies in Asian Topics)

Breeds of Empire: The Invention of the Horse in Southeast Asia and Southern Africa 1500-1950 (NIAS Studies in Asian Topics)

by Greg Bankoff (Author), SandraSwart (Author)

Synopsis

Ships of empire carried not just merchandise, soldiers and administrators but also equine genes from as far afield as Europe, Arabia, the Americas, China and Japan. In the process, they introduced horses into parts of the world not native to that animal in historical times. As a result, horses in Thailand, the Philippine Horses, the Cape Horse in South Africa and the Basotho Pony in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho share a genetic lineage with the horse found in the Indonesian archipelago.This book explores the 'invention' of specific breeds of horse in the context of imperial design and colonial trade routes. Here, it focuses on the introduction, invention and use of the horse in Thailand, the Philippines and southern Africa as well as examining its roots and evolution within Indonesia. In addition, it examines the colonial trade in horses within the Indian Ocean and discusses the historiographical and methodological problems associated with writing a more species- or horse-centric history. This is a fascinating study that will appeal not only to scholars but also to the broad horse-reading public interested in all things equine.

$57.26

Quantity

10 in stock

More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 263
Publisher: NIAS Press
Published: 01 Aug 2007

ISBN 10: 8776940144
ISBN 13: 9788776940140

Author Bio
Greg Bankoff is Professor of Modern History at the University of Hull. Sandra Swart lectures in history at Stellenbosch University.