Religion, Disease and Cultural Difference on the Voyage from Britain to the South Pacific in the Early Nineteenth Century

Abstract

ABSTRACT Focusing on the outbreak of disease on the Royal Admiral, this article explores how oceanic voyaging shaped the evangelisation of the South Pacific in the early nineteenth century. Incorporating a microhistorical approach, it argues that missionary experiences on board were embedded in the theological impetus of evangelical overseas expansion; they helped consolidate missionary understandings of cultural difference; and they simultaneously put a strain on missionary connections to Britain. The article contributes to research on missionary knowledge production, narrowing in on evangelical and imperial exchange networks, and exploring how mobility and physical vulnerability could reconfigure ties to the missionaries’ home society.