History ETDs

Publication Date

Spring 5-17-1949

Abstract

That curiously titled incident, "The War of Jenkins' Ear," has received varied treatment by historians. It has been a challenge to the justifiers of English imperialism, and it has attracted those interested in early colonial policies and lovers of the piquant. The earliest historians interested in the war were preoccupied with Jenkins and the ear itself. Later historians stressed the international causes of the war--the colonial commercial and territorial dissension between England and Spain--the two protagonists in the war. While these international antagonisms were the underlying causes of the war, they were not precipitating factors. Study of the sources shows that unrest and dissatisfaction with internal affairs in England caused the war which was always imminent to be declared by England in 1739. The purpose of this thesis is to show the place of party politics in England as the cause of the coming of war in 1739.

Level of Degree

Masters

Degree Name

History

Department Name

History

First Committee Member (Chair)

Josiah Cox Russell

Second Committee Member

Dorothy Woodward

Third Committee Member

Marion Dargan

Language

English

Keywords

War of Jenkins' Ear, Robert Walpole, Spanish Caribbean, Imperialism

Document Type

Thesis

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