Product Description

Henry Hobhouse was the first to recognise plants as a causal factor in history in his Seeds of Wealth. In this new book, he examines four plants: rubber, timber, tobacco and the wine grape, each of which enormously increased the wealth of those who dealt in them, created great new industries and changed the course of history.

Ancient Rome`s monopoly on wine production had huge economic and hygienic importance. Without rubber, there would have been no development of cars, buses and trucks, bicycles, waterproof clothing or even tennis balls and condoms. Tobacco has largely been condemned for its effects on health and its true role in history ignored. Tobacco has often been used in place of currency and its growth in Virginia supported a colony that produced much of the talent that made Independence possible. Timber shortages led the British Royal Navy to become dependent on American timber. The dearth of timber drove English coal mines deep, which led to the steam pumps, steam engines, and ultimately the Industrial Revolution.

These are fascinating stories the effect of minutiae on the great waves of history.

`You cannot help but admire and enjoy the company of a man who takes such a novel and global view of history` Spectator

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #970492 in Books
• Published on: 2004-11-10
• Released on: 2004-11-10
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .92 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 255 pages

From Booklist
The four "plants" of the subtitle are timber, wine, rubber, and tobacco. Timber, Hobhouse points out, was important in the history of England and the 13 North American colonies. The colonies supplied timber to the mother country, and it was American timber that aided the development of fishing and whaling, railroads, and wooden houses in new cities such as Chicago. Hobhouse discusses the wealth-creating potential of wine from before the time of Periclean Athens, through the Roman and medieval eras, up to the present. Rubber, the author reminds, has generated wealth for many nations and has largely created three new ones: Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Tobacco, a plant with a negative contemporary image, had historically profound effects on Anglo-American relations. The cigarette was invented in the 1840s and the cigarette-making machine developed in the 1870s. Hobhouse posits that the greatest beneficiaries in most countries "have been, since about 1920, the tax gatherers." Written in the form of essays, this book lucidly illustrates how these four plants created new industries and changed the course of history. George Cohen
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