Sir Andrew Halliday (1782–1839) served as a surgeon in the Peninsular War, and then as a royal physician. In 1832 he was appointed Inspector of Hospitals in the West Indies until ill-health forced his return to Scotland. During his time there he collected the information for this work, published in 1837. His study of the Windward and Leeward Islands in the West Indies is comprehensive. He covers the colonisation, administration, religious, social and economic history of the islands, flora and fauna, and the climate and diseases of the region. Trinidad he judged to be the most unhealthy of the islands, with malaria being a serious problem due to the terrain and vegetation. He kept meteorological records, and commented on seasonal patterns of illnesses. He also discusses the effects of the abolition of slavery, believing that the scare-mongering of the anti-abolitionists had been proved false.