White Plague

The concept of 'plantation' is explored in this programme, yet presenter Niall Ferguson is not referring to crops but the settlement of British people into the colonies. Without this mass white emigration there would have been no empire. Visiting Northern Ireland, the USA and Australia, we explore how the first colonies of the British empire developed. In contrast to the Spanish, the British viewed the colonies as a way to gain land to settle on and use, rather than just conquest and plunder. The east coast of the USA was first settled by puritans wanting religious freedom, including those who sailed on the famous ship 'The Mayflower' in 1620. The combination of cheap land and abundant natural resources made this an ideal location for sugar and tobacco plantations. Niall goes on to describe the American War of Independence a century and a half later. From Native American Indians to the Aborigines of Australia, the indigenous people of the 'New World' were treated appallingly, with little or no respect for land rights. One of the great ironies of the British empire is the difference between official policy in London and the actions of white settlers in the colonies.