Legacies of British slave-ownership is a significant resource for the study of British slave-ownership. The database, created by the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slave-Ownership at University College London (UCL), includes 297 individual entries for Somerset and 50 for Dorset.
Colonial slavery shaped modern Britain and we all still live with its legacies. The slave-owners were one very important means by which the fruits of slavery were transmitted to metropolitan Britain. LBS believe that research and analysis of this group are key to understanding the extent and the limits of slavery’s role in shaping British history and leaving lasting legacies that reach into the present.
Matthew J. Smith, Director of the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slave-Ownership, made a statement on 12 June 2020 about the challenges and future for the database:
‘It has been our mission to encourage a fulsome understanding of what centuries of Black enslavement has meant for nations, societies, and peoples. The shadows of the history of slavery follow us all. The present moment demands that we maintain active and informed dialogue on the roots of that history and its manifold endurances. This is an unshakeable aspect of the intellectual commitment of the work of our Centre, and one that we intend to advance through new research, public engagement, and activities with our community of collaborators within and outside the UK.’
To find out more about the project and to search the database, visit Legacies of British Slave-ownership