Reading List – The Slave Trade and Abolition

Books

  • Follarin Shyllon, 'Black People in Britain 1555-1833' Oxford University Press 1977
  • S I Martin, 'Britain's Slave Trade' Channel 4 Books 1999
  • David Dabydeen, 'Hogarth's Blacks: Images of Blacks in 18th Century English Art' Manchester University Press 1987
  • Simon Schama, 'Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves and the American Revolution' (BBC Books 2006)
  • Peter Fryer, 'Staying Power: The History of Black people in Britain' Pluto books 1984
  • Paul Edwards and James Walvin, 'Black Personalities in the Era of the Slave Trade' Palgrave Macmillan 1983
  • Melinda Elder, 'The Slave Trade and the Economic Development of 18th Century Lancaster Keele University Press 1992
  • James Walvin, 'Black Ivory: Slavery in the British Empire' Blackwell 2001
  • Nigel File and Chris Power, 'Black Settlers in Britain 1555-1958' Heinemann 1981
  • Olaudah Equiano, ed. Vincent Carretta, 'The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African and Other Writings' Penguin Classics 2003
  • Ottobah Cugoano, ed. Vincent Carretta, 'Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evils of Slavery' (Penguin Classics 1999)
  • Ignatius Sancho, 'The Letters of the Late Ignatius Sancho, the African' Penguin Classics 1998
  • Vincent Carretta, 'Equiano the African: A Biography of a Self Made Man' University of Georgia Press 2005
  • Gretchen Gerzina, 'Black England: Life before Emancipation' John Murray 1995
  • Michael Jordan, 'The Great Abolition Sham: The True Story of the End of the British Slave Trade' Sutton 2005
  • Emma Christopher, 'Slave ships, sailors and their captive cargoes 1730-1807' Cambridge University Press 2006
  • William St. Clair, 'The Grand Slave Emporium: Cape Coast Castle and the British slave trade' Profile Books 2006
  • Paul Lovejoy, 'Transformations in Slavery: A history of slavery in Africa' Cambridge University Press
  • Madge Dresser and Sue Giles, 'Bristol and transatlantic slavery'
  • Gail Cameron and Stan Crooke, 'Liverpool: Capital of the slave trade' Picton Press 1992
  • Clare Midgley, 'Women against Slavery: The British Campaigns' 1780-1870 London 1992
  • Mary Prince, 'The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave' ed. Sarah Salih, Penguin Classics 2000
  • Adam Hochschild, 'Bury the Chains: The British Struggle to abolish Slavery' Pan 2006

Web links

Brycchan Carey's Website is an excellent introductory site to eighteenth century Black literature and history. Sancho, Equiano and Cugoano feature heavily.

The Portcities website is for the exploration of Britain's maritime history includes detailed sections on Bristol's connections to the slave trade and a Slave Trail around Greenwich, London.

The National Archives has a comprehensive online exhibition that looks at the impact of the Black and Asian presence in Britain between 1500-1850.

The National Archives also has a slavery section, which is a portal to research guides, digitised documents  and teaching resources on Britain's slave trade and the abolition movement.

Recovered Histories Anti-Slavery International has digitised its collection of 18th and 19th century literature on the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Recovered Histories captures the narratives of the enslaved, enslavers, slave ship surgeons, abolitionists, parliamentarians, clergy, planters and rebels.

The Understanding Slavery website has teaching resources based on a number of museum collections relating to African history and the slave trade.

Manchester area museums site recounting local links to the history of the slave trade.

An excellent Wilberforce-based walking tour around Hull's old town.