Clarendon Paperbacks
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During the eighteenth century, transportation to the colonies became Britain's foremost criminal punishment. From 1718 to 1775, courts banished fifty thousand convicts, the largest body of immigrants after African slaves ever compelled to go to America. The first comprehensive account of the transportation in the years preceding the settling of Australia, Bound for America combines analysis with a vivid narrative to provide new insights into the origins of crime and the treatment of offenders on both sides of the Atlantic. Scholars and students of 18th century British and American history, particularly social history, history of crime, and legal history will find the book of great interest.