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by David Wetherell (Author)
Biography of Charles Abel, founder of the Kwato Mission that had a profound and far-reaching role Papua New Guinea.
Brilliant and forceful, Charles Abel was one of the most acclaimed missionaries in the South Pacific. His Kwato Mission, founded in 1891, became virtually a 'state within a state' in Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea. The influence of Kwato remained long after the Mission itself began to decline, with descendants of Mission families playing significant roles in the formation of the independent nation of Papua New Guinea during the 1960s and 1970s.
Charles Abel contributes to contemporary debate on the role of missions in the expansion of empire. David Wetherell has drawn on unpublished documents to produce a fascinating portrait of this controversial man and the dynasty he founded.
Author Biography
Dr David Wetherell taught in Papua New Guinea between 1963 and 1970, and was Senior Lecturer in History in the School of Australian and International Studies at Deakin University, Victoria. His previous publications include Reluctant Mission: The Anglican Church in Papua New Guinea 1891-1942.
