Natural Science And The Origins Of The British Empire (empires In Perspective)

NATURAL SCIENCE AND THE ORIGINS OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE Empires in Perspective Series Editors: Advisory Editor: Tony Ballantyne Duncan Bell Francisco Bethencourt Caroline Elkins Durba Ghosh Masaie Matsumura Titles in this Series Between Empire and Revolution: A Life of Sidney Bunting, 1873–1936 Allison Drew A Wider Patriotism: Alfred Milner and the British Empire J. Lee Thompson Missionary Education and Empire in Late Colonial India, 1860–1920 Hayden J. A. Bellenoit Transoceanic Radical, William Duane: National Identity and Empire 1760– 1835 Nigel Ken Little Forthcoming Titles Empire of Political Thought: Indigenous Australians and the Language of Colonial Government Bruce Buchan Ireland and Empire, 1692–1770 Charles Ivar McGrath The English Empire in America, 1602–1658: Beyond Jamestown Louis H. Roper www.pickeringchatto.com/empires NATURAL SCIENCE AND THE ORIGINS OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE by Sarah Irving london PICKERING & CHATTO 2008 Published by Pickering & Chatto (Publishers) Limited 21 Bloomsbury Way, London WC1A 2TH 2252 Ridge Road, Brookfield, Vermont 05036-9704, USA www.pickeringchatto.com All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior permission of the publisher. © Pickering & Chatto (Publishers) Ltd 2008 © Sarah Irving 2008 british library cataloguing in publication data Irving, Sarah Natural science and the origins of the British Empire. – (Empires in perspective) 1. Natural history – History – 17th century 2. Science – History – 17th century 3. Imperialism and science 4. Great Britain – Colonies I. Title 509.1’71241’09032 ISBN-13: 9781851968893 ∞ This publication is printed on acid-free paper that conforms to the American National Standard for the Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials. Typeset by Pickering & Chatto (Publishers) Limited Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge CONTENTS Acknowledgements Preface vii xi Introduction 1 1 ‘In a Pure Soil’: Francis Bacon’s Empire of Knowledge 23 2 Restoring Eden in America: The Hartlib Circle’s Pansophical Empire 47 3 Robert Boyle’s Protestant Colonial Project 69 4 The Royal Society and the Atlantic World 93 5 John Locke’s Language of Empire 109 Conclusion 133 Notes Works Cited Index 135 163 177 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book is in some sense a product of the enduring legacy of the former British Empire. As an Australian studying at Cambridge University on a British Commonwealth Scholarship, it was perhaps fitting that I chose to write on an imperial theme. The debts of gratitude I have accumulated during my three years at Cambridge and one year at Oxford are also testament to a post-imperial world. I was sustained by my family in Sydney, Australia, supported by colleagues and mentors in England, and inspired by my friends around the Atlantic. The Association of Commonwealth Universities made it possible for me to complete my PhD at King’s College, Cambridge, on a British Commonwealth Scholarship. I want to thank King’s College, its students and Fellows, for allowing me to live and work among them. I wrote the book manuscript during my term as a Junior Research Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford. I relished the stimulating and democratic atmosphere of the college and I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Fellows and students of Wolfson. For their financial assistance in the form of grants or scholarships, I would like to thank King’s College, Cambridge, Wolfson College, Oxford, the Association of Commonwealth Universities and Warwick University. The book was awarded the Royal Society of Literature and Jerwood Foundation Award for Non-Fic