Merchants of Medicines : The Commerce and Coercion of Health in Britain’s Long Eighteenth Century

The period from the late seventeenth to the early nineteenth century—the so-called long eighteenth century of English history—was a time of profound global change, marked by the expansion of intercontinental empires, long-distance trade, and human enslavement. It was also the moment when medicines, previously produced locally and in small batches, became global products. As greater numbers of British subjects struggled to survive overseas, more medicines than ever were manufactured and exported to help them. Most historical accounts, however, obscure the medicine trade’s dependence on slave labor, plantation agriculture, and colonial warfare. In __Merchants of Medicines__, Zachary Dorner follows the earliest industrial pharmaceuticals from their manufacture in the United Kingdom, across trade routes, and to the edges of empire, telling a story of what medicines were, what they did, and what they meant. He brings to life business, medical, and government records to evoke a vibrant early modern world of London laboratories, Caribbean estates, South Asian factories, New England timber camps, and ships at sea. In these settings, medicines were produced, distributed, and consumed in new ways to help confront challenges of distance, labor, and authority in colonial territories. __Merchants of Medicines__ offers a new history of economic and medical development across early America, Britain, and South Asia, revealing the unsettlingly close ties among medicine, finance, warfare, and slavery that changed people’s expectations of their health and their bodies. The period from the late 17th to the early 19th century - the so-called long 18th century of English history - was a time of profound global change, marked by the expansion of intercontinental empires, long-distance trade, and human enslavement. It was also the moment when medicines, previously produced locally and in small batches, became global products. As greater numbers of British subjects struggled to survive overseas, more medicines than ever were manufactured and exported to help them. Most historical accounts, however, obscure the medicine trade's dependence on slave labour, plantation agriculture, and colonial warfare. In 'Merchants of Medicines,' Zachary Dorner follows the earliest industrial pharmaceuticals from their manufacture in the UK, across trade routes, and to the edges of empire, telling a story of what medicines were, what they did, and what they meant "The circulation of medicine and medical knowledge in Britain was long entangled not simply with the mechanisms of commerce but with those of empire. The same networks that enabled the articulation and defense of imperial priorities also transmitted knowledge and value in ways that ultimately transformed the concept and norms of the field of medicine-and the conception of trade more broadly. From this entanglement gradually arose what we can recognize today as a modern, transnational mode of exchange of money, information, and medical standards. Zachary Dorner's book illuminates the codependence of empire and medical knowledge as they took root around the globe, directly shaping the quality and nature of life itself"-- Provided by publisher Contents 6 List of Figures and Tables 8 Introduction 10 One. Toward an Industry 22 Two. Distance’s Remedies 50 Three. The Possibility of Unfree Markets 80 Four. Pine Trees and Profits 116 Five. Self-Sufficiency in a Bottle 146 Conclusion 182 Acknowledgments 188 Notes 192 Bibliography 234 Index 262