From New Babylon to Eden

"Bertrand Van Ruymbeke is perhaps the leading scholar of colonial British America and his book, From New Babylon to Eden, represents a major addition to early modern European migration studies. Notable for its exploration of the factors that drove the French Protestants to flee their country in massive numbers during the closing decades of the seventeenth century, the volume is clearly the best case study of the lives of these people in South Carolina, one of their principal destinations in America. Lucidly written, thoroughly researched, and persuasively argued, this study will be essential reading for all serious students of the formation of the early modern Atlantic world. It is indeed a praiseworthy achievement."—Jack P. Greene, Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities Emeritus, Johns Hopkins University

"Van Ruymbeke provides us with a fuller picture of the Huguenot emigration as experienced on both sides of the Atlantic than we've ever had before. His portrait is rich with new and significant discoveries, from his superior command of French sources to his diligent research into South Carolina records. From New Babylon to Eden grants us a compelling view of the Huguenots' arrival and remarkable experience in South Carolina."—Jon Butler, Howard R. Lamar Professor of History and Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Yale University

Winner of the 2007 Book of the Year Award, National Huguenot Society