Commerce and Economic Change in West Africa Lynn Hardback 9780521590747

Commerce and Economic Change in West AfricaThe Palm Oil Trade in the Nineteenth Century\nAuthor(s): Martin Lynn\nFormat: Hardback\nPublisher: Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Cambridge University Press\nISBN-13: 9780521590747, 978-0521590747\nSynopsis\nA key theme in the West African trading system of the nineteenth century is the transition from the slave trade to 'legitimate' commerce, and its significance for the African societies of the region. In this period of transition, trade in palm oil was at the core of relations between Britain and West Africa, and of immense importance to the economies of large parts of West Africa. Martin Lynn's authoritative and comprehensive study of the palm oil trade covers the whole of this critical period for all of West Africa. It explains how the palm oil trade grew organically out of the organisation of the slave trade. The situation changed sharply with the development of steam communication between Britain and West Africa .