People Australia

This project aims to add biographies of people who had links to British slavery to People Australia. It forms part of a research program aiming to examine the importance of the legacies of British slavery for the colonisation of Australia. In August 1833 British Parliament abolished slavery in the British Caribbean, Mauritius and the Cape when it passed the ‘Act for the abolition of slavery throughout the British Colonies, for promoting the industry of manumitted slaves, and for compensating the persons hitherto entitled to the services of such slaves.’ While this momentous event has continued to be celebrated, it is often forgotten that many of those who benefited from slavery had ties to other parts of the British Empire, including the settler colonies of Australia, Canada and South Africa. This work has started with tracing the movement of people, goods, capital, and practices from the Caribbean to the newly-established colony of Western Australia (funded by the Australian Research Council DP200100094), and will continue by exploring the legacies of British slavery in South Australia and Victoria (DP240101389). We are working in collaboration with the National Centre of Biography and the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slave-ownership at University College London. We aim to extend this work to include links to other colonies.