The Other Cosmopolitans: Blackness, Indigeneity, and Imperial Formations in Lesser Antilles

The early modern era witnessed the consolidation of imperial powers and colonies in the Atlantic World. Historians have examined how European sojourners, traders, and officials became cosmopolitan subjects, who were involved in different imperial domains and facilitated the formation of the Atlantic World. Nevertheless, scholarly emphasis on European individuals overshadows how independent Natives and Afro-descendants also evolved into cosmopolitan people who skillfully navigated different cultural, political, legal, and commercial spheres. This presentation focuses on a cohort of other cosmopolitans such as Thomas “Indian” Warner and Joseph Chatoyer. I suggest that their role was central in forging the geopolitics and societies of the early modern Antilles. Their trajectory invites us to rethink the category of Atlantic cosmopolitans and taking their role seriously in creating the early modern world.