Changes

So instead of 1865, I ended up beginning my story in 1846, a pivotal year marked by multiple economic, geopolitical, and imperial events: Britain’s turn to free trade; a temporary US turn to trade liberalization; an upswing in transatlantic antislavery activism; alongside a US war with Mexico and the threat of another war between the United States and the British over the Oregon Territory.

'''As you were researching this book, what surprised you the most?'''