Taking Manhattan

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‘An informative and thought-provoking history’ The Telegraph

‘A story rich in intrigue, diplomacy and personalities’ New Statesman

'Offering new perspectives and ideas' Guardian

'Here is the whirligig of history, which Shorto captures vividly in this well-researched, well-written, sprightly book' Literary Review

A New Zealand Listener 100 Best Books of 2025

In 1664, England decided to invade the Dutch-controlled city of New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island. Charles II and his brother, the Duke of York, had dreams of empire, and their arch-rivals, the Dutch, were in the way. But Richard Nicolls, who led the English flotilla bent on destruction, changed his strategy once he began parleying with Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch leader on Manhattan.

Bristling with vibrant characters, Taking Manhattan reveals the founding of New York to be an invention: the result not of a violent English takeover, but of clever negotiations that led to the fusing of the multiethnic, capitalistic society the Dutch had pioneered to the power of the rising English empire. But the birth of what might be termed the first modern city is also a story of the brutal dispossession of Native Americans and of the roots of American slavery.

Based on newly translated sources, Taking Manhattan shows how the paradox of New York’s origins — boundless opportunity coupled with subjugation and displacement — reflect America’s promise and failure to this day.