List of public statues of individuals linked to the Atlantic slave trade

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This is a list of public statues of individuals linked to the Atlantic slave trade.

Contents

United Kingdom

StatueLocationRelation to slaveryRef
Statue of John Cass Statue of Sir John Cass, Jewry Street.jpg 31 Jewry Street, London John Cass was one of the major developers of the Atlantic slave trade and had direct business contacts with slave agents in the Caribbean and African forts. [1] An 18th-century lead statue of Cass by Louis-François Roubiliac, commissioned by the Sir John Cass Foundation, was sited for many years on Aldgate High Street, but was moved to the John Cass Institute in Jewry Street in 1869. It was removed to the Guildhall in 1980. A fibreglass replica was placed in the empty niche of the John Cass Institute in Jewry Street in 1998. [2] Several copies have been made; one is sited in the entrance lobby of the London Metropolitan University Archive. [3] [4]
Statue of Sir Francis Drake DrakeStatueTavistock.jpg Plymouth Road, Tavistock Sir Francis Drake was involved with capture, transport, and sale of slaves across his career, and was particularly influential in establishing early British slave trade. [5] [6] [7]
Statue of Thomas Guy Northern Side of the Thomas Guy Statue at Guys Hospital.jpg Forecourt of Guy's Hospital, London Thomas Guy owned a substantial shareholding in the South Sea Company. [1] Guys and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust said in a statement that they would work with the Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm to "...consider the right way forward. We recognise and understand the anger felt by the black community and are fully committed to playing our part in ending racism, discrimination and inequality". [8] [9]
Statue of Edward Colston Statue Of Edward Colston.jpg Bristol The statue of Edward Colston, a slave trader, was toppled and thrown into the Bristol Harbour by protesters. [10]
Statue of James II, Trafalgar Square James II Trafalgar Square right side.jpg Trafalgar Square, London The Duke of York James, later James II of England, was the principal Governor of the Royal African Company and its largest shareholder. [11] [12]
Statue of Robert Milligan Statue of Robert Milligan - geograph.org.uk - 1473442.jpg London Statue of Robert Milligan, Scottish merchant and slave trader, outside the Museum of London Docklands. It was removed following a request from the Canal & River Trust. [13]
Statue of Robert Geffrye Statue of Robert Geffrye, Museum of the Home.jpg London Robert Geffrye was an English merchant who made part of his wealth from slavery, and part-owned a slave ship. A petition was raised for the removal of his statue outside the Museum of the Home; the Museum elected to "reinterpret and contextualise" the statue in its current location. [14]

Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm

In June 2020 the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, established the Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm to "review and improve diversity across London's public realm to ensure the capital's landmarks suitably reflect London's achievements and diversity". [15] Khan said "When you look at the public realm – street names, street squares, murals – not only are there some of slavers that I think should be taken down, and the commission will advise us on that, but actually we don’t have enough representation of people of colour, black people, women, those from the LGBT community." [16]

Khan also announced a pledge to create a National Slavery museum or memorial. [1]

Channel Islands

StatueLocationRelation to slaveryRef
Statue of George Carteret Saint Peter, Jersey A statue of Sir George Carteret, a loyalist of the future Charles II during the reign of Oliver Cromwell, was erected in 2014 to mark the 350th birthday of New Jersey. It was repeatedly defaced in 2020, in the aftermath of the George Floyd protests. [17]

[18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Hawkins (naval commander)</span> English vice-admiral, privateer and slave trader

Sir John Hawkins was an English naval commander, naval administrator, privateer and slave trader.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum of the Home</span> Museum in London, England

The Museum of the Home, formerly the Geffrye Museum, is a free museum in the 18th-century Grade I-listed former almshouses on Kingsland Road in Hoxton, London. The museum's change of name was announced in 2019. The museum explores home and home life from 1600 to the present day with galleries which ask questions about 'home', present diverse lived experiences, and examine the psychological and emotional relationships people have with the idea of "home" alongside a series of period room displays.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal African Company</span> English trading company

The Royal African Company (RAC) was an English trading company established in 1660 by the House of Stuart and City of London merchants to trade along the West African coast. It was overseen by the Duke of York, the brother of Charles II of England; the RAC was founded after Charles II ascended to the English throne in the 1660 Stuart Restoration, and he granted it a monopoly on all English trade with Africa. While the company's original purpose was to trade for gold in the Gambia River, as Prince Rupert of the Rhine had identified gold deposits in the region during the Interregnum, the RAC quickly began trading in slaves, which became its largest commodity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Colston</span> English merchant, politician, philanthropist and slave trader (1636–1721)

Edward Colston was an English merchant, slave trader, philanthropist, and Tory Member of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sadiq Khan</span> Mayor of London since 2016

Sadiq Aman Khan is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting from 2005 until 2016. A member of the Labour Party, Khan is on the party's soft left and has been ideologically characterised as a social democrat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Africa Squadron</span> Military unit

The West Africa Squadron, also known as the Preventative Squadron, was a squadron of the British Royal Navy whose goal was to suppress the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa. Formed in 1808 after the British Parliament passed the Slave Trade Act 1807 and based out of Portsmouth, England, it remained an independent command until 1856 and then again from 1866 to 1867.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Milligan (merchant)</span> Scottish merchant, ship-owner and slave-owner

Robert Milligan was a prominent Scottish mercantile chamber member and slave owner who was the driving force behind the construction and initial statutory sectoral monopoly of the West India Docks in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stepney All Saints School</span> Voluntary aided school in London, England

Stepney All Saints Church of England Secondary School is a Church of England voluntary aided school and sixth form located in Stepney, London, England. The last Ofsted report in October 2015 rated SJCR School as "Outstanding."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Cass</span> British politician and major figure in the early development of the slave trade

Sir John Cass was an English merchant, Tory Member of Parliament and philanthropist. He was also a key figure in the Royal African Company, which was involved in the Atlantic slave trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Robert Clive, London</span> Sculpture by John Tweed

A Grade II-listed bronze statue of Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, by John Tweed, stands in King Charles Street, Whitehall, London. The work was unveiled in 1912 outside Gwydyr House, also in Whitehall, and was moved to its current location in 1916.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Robert Clayton</span> Sculpture by Grinling Gibbons

The statue of Robert Clayton stands at the entrance to the North Wing of St Thomas' Hospital, Lambeth, London. The sculptor was Grinling Gibbons, and the statue was executed around 1700–1714. Sir Robert was a banker, politician and Lord Mayor of London. As President of St Thomas', he was responsible for the complete rebuilding of the hospital, and associated church in the late 17th century. The statue was designated a Grade I listed structure in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom</span> 2020 anti-racism protests in the UK

Protests were held across the United Kingdom following the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, by police officers while under arrest in the United States on 25 May 2020. Immediately following his murder, protests and riots occurred in dozens of cities across the United States. Protests were staged internationally for the first time on 28 May, with a solidarity demonstration outside the United States Embassy in London. They took place during the UK COVID-19 pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Edward Colston</span> Statue in Bristol, England, toppled 2020

The statue of Edward Colston is a bronze statue of Bristol-born merchant and trans-Atlantic slave trader, Edward Colston (1636–1721). It was created in 1895 by the Irish sculptor John Cassidy and was formerly erected on a plinth of Portland stone in a public space known as "The Centre" in Bristol, until it was toppled by anti-racism protestors in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Robert Milligan</span> Sculpture by Richard Westmacott

A statue of Robert Milligan was installed at the West India Docks in London, in 1813. Milligan was a merchant, and was largely responsible for the construction of the West India Docks. After being put in storage in 1943, it was re-erected by the London Docklands Development Corporation in 1997.

The Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm is an initiative established on 9 June 2020 by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to review public tributes in the British capital, including statues and other landmarks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Thomas Guy</span> Statue in Guys Hospital, London

A statue of Thomas Guy stands in the forecourt of Guy's Hospital in the borough of Southwark in Central London. The statue is Grade II listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of John Cass</span> Sculpture by Louis-François Roubelard

The statue of John Cass is a lead figure by Louis-François Roubiliac of John Cass (1661–1718), the English merchant and Member of Parliament. The original statue of 1751 now stands in the Guildhall in London. There is also a fibreglass replica at the School of Art, Architecture and Design at London Metropolitan University in Jewry Street, installed in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Actions against memorials in Great Britain during the George Floyd protests</span> Protest-related actions

A number of statues and memorials have been the subject of protests and petitions during the George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom in 2020.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Robert Milligan: Slave trader statue removed from outside London museum". BBC News. 9 June 2020. Archived from the original on 9 June 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  2. ↑ Historic England, "Sir John Cass College (1064654)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 8 June 2020
  3. ↑ "Statue: Sir John Cass statue – Jewry Street". London Remembers. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  4. ↑ Historic England, "Sir John Cass School (1285969)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 8 June 2020
  5. ↑ Vicary, Tim (4 October 2012). "Sir Francis Drake and the African Slaves". English Historical Fiction Authors. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  6. ↑ Green, Alex (9 June 2020). "Petition calls for removal of Sir Francis Drake statue from Plymouth Hoe". Plymouth Live. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  7. ↑ Historic England, "Statue of Sir Francis Drake (1326211)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 13 June 2020
  8. ↑ "Guy's Hospital considers taking down controversial statue of businessman who profited from slavery". ITV News. 9 June 2020. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  9. ↑ Historic England, "Statue of Thomas Guy, founder of Guy's Hospital, in centre of forecourt (1385879)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 8 June 2020
  10. ↑ Siddique, Haroon (7 June 2020). "BLM protesters topple statue of Bristol slave trader Edward Colston". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 June 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  11. ↑ The King's City. Simon and Schuster. 6 February 2018. ISBN   9781681777023. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  12. ↑ "Legacy of Slavery Working Party recommendations". Jesus College, Cambridge. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  13. ↑ Burford, Rachael (9 June 2020). "Statue of 18th century slaver Robert Milligan in east London removed after pressure from campaigners". Evening Standard. London. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  14. ↑ "Museum of the Home to keep Sir Robert Geffrye statue". BBC News. 30 June 2020. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  15. ↑ "Mayor unveils commission to review diversity of London's public realm". Mayor of London. 9 June 2020. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  16. ↑ Morris, Nigel (9 June 2020). "Sadiq Khan says London slave trader statues could be pulled down after review". inews.co.uk. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  17. ↑ "New Jersey founder Sir George Carteret to get statue in home island". BBC News. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  18. ↑ "Jersey statue of slave trader defaced with paint". BBC News. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2021.

Further reading

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/84-of-black-britons-reject-toppling-statues-w2v5hf9f8

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