Greytown, Great Power Politics, and History’s Grey Areas

Tyler R. Smotherman reviews Will Soper’s “Greytown Is No More!” The 1854 Razing of a Central American port, the U.S. Businesses Behind Its Demise, and the Lasting Foreign Policy Legacy, which looks at the cause of Greytown’s destruction and takes a critical look at the court’s subsequent ruling in Durand v. Hollins.

Smotherman praises the way Soper vividly revisits the historical events surrounding Greytown and casts new light on the cause of its destruction. Although, Smotherman finds Soper’s legal analysis of Durand more lacking than his historical discussion, concluding that Soper goes too far in his appraisal of the case’s influence and in his desire to limit Presidential war-making powers.

But overall, Smotherman recommends Soper’s work, endorsing it as the “the single most comprehensive examination” of Greytown’s destruction and an engaging read.