The Rule of the Admirals: Law, Custom, and Naval Government in Newfoundland, 1699-1832,
2003
Published for the Osgoode Society by the University of Toronto Press
Cost: $39.50
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Description
The past two decades have witnessed a remarkable expansion in the study of the trans-Atlantic links
of the
British empire.
This wave of historiography has passed by Newfoundland.
Although most scholars acknowledge the role of the cod fishery in the Atlantic economy, Newfoundland
is
usually neglected or simply omitted from studies of the first British Empire.
Early popular histories created enduring stereotypes which unduly emphasized the island's lack of
social
and governmental structures, particularly the alleged weaknesses of Anaval government.
With few exceptions, historians still see eighteenth-century Newfoundland through the lens of
cultural
exceptionalism as an isolated backwater cut off from the mainstream of Atlantic commerce and
politics.
In this original and perceptive work, Professor Bannister requires us to rethink much of what we
know about
early Newfoundland history.
By addressing the issue of how the island was governed in the 130 years prior to the establishment
of
an elected assembly, and by placing his analysis firmly within the material conditions of
Newfoundland society,
he provides a striking reinterpretation of a critical period in the island's colonial development.
Reviews
Jerry Bannister's book received the Canadian Historical Association's Sir John A. Macdonald award in
2003.
That a book examining naval government in eighteenth-century Newfoundland should receive this honour
is an
indication of its quality and of its impact both on Newfoundland historiography and on legal history
within
the British Empire.
Bannister's well written analysis of eighteenth-century Newfoundland society opens up a number of
avenues
for historians interested in colonial comparisons, (including) his intriguing exploration of the
role of
customary law in naval government. David Murray, American Historical Review, vol 110, 2005
In a study that takes legal history as a lens through which to examine not only the processes of law themselves but also wider issues of governance and the negotiation of authority, Bannister makes a convincing case that Newfoundland was neither anomalous nor backward in an empire characterized by diversity. J.G. Reid, Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, vol 32, 2004
The Rule of Admirals is a model of historical scholarship, whose significance goes well beyond the Eastern Shore of Newfoundland and will be appreciated by all students of the Early British Empire. Luca Cordignola, University of Toronto Quarterly, vol. 75, 2006
