Gloucester slave trade statues recommendations
Change could soon be coming to some of Gloucester’s statues and monuments which have historic links to the transatlantic slave trade.
Gloucester City Council agreed in 2020 to undertake a review of all monuments, statues and plaques in the city connected with slavery and plantation ownership. Council officers have now completed their report and have drafted a series of recommendations.
The general recommendations included proposals such as pursuing education or interpretation projects at a city-wide level to improve public understanding about the topic.
They also seek imaginative options to address the city’s contested history in a way that both challenges and educates. But the report also includes a series of specific recommendations for some of the monuments and statues which were identified by the review.
Council leader Richard Cook (Con, Kingsway) praised city archaeologist Andrew Armstrong and all those involved in the review for their extensive work.
“This was an incredibly detailed and lengthy report. Thanks go to Andrew Armstrong and anyone who worked with him on preparing it,” he said.
“It’s delivered something we can be really proud of and we can take forward in a positive way.
“It would be a nice thing to do to contextualise monuments by putting notice boards next to sites which may be contentious and explain things in a little bit more detail.”
Queen Anne statue
Queen Anne became monarch of Great Britain in 1707 and during her rule she played significant a role in facilitating the growth of British involvement in the transatlantic slave trade.
The review found a single heritage asset relating to Queen Anne in Gloucester. This is a statue on the south side of Spa Fields Sports Ground.
It dates from 1711 and was sculpted by John Ricketts in limestone and is now badly weathered. And it was originally erected at the north end of Southgate Street, moved to the garden of Paddock House, Pitt Street around 1780 and from there to College Green in 1839. It was erected on its present site in 1865 and is grade II listed.
Officers say the statue is unlikely to be directly linked to the slave trade but Queen Anne’s involvement in expanding British involvement in the slave trade is clear. The options considered by the council include keeping the status quo. Due to erosion the statue is almost illegible and does little to commemorate Queen Anne.
However, the council could decide to contextualise the statue online or in the park itself and include information about her role in the slavery economy. Another option is to relocate the monument. It is owned by the council and could be stored in the Museum of Gloucester.
This would allow the wider context of the statue to be discussed as part of a museum display. It would also help protect the listed building. And the final option available to the council is to remove the statue and place it in storage.
Baker’s Quay
Samuel Baker arrived in Gloucester in 1832 from London after accumulating his wealth through investment in colonial estates and shipping to the West Indies. He partnered with Thomas Phillpotts in an endeavour to ship goods from the Caribbean directly to Gloucester however this venture was short lived due to the abolition of slavery.
The two were instrumental in the development of the area round Gloucester’s docks known as Baker’s Quay. Phillpotts and Baker widened the existing canal in order to create more space in the dock to allow for more import and export of goods from the city.
The review’s recommendations include several options. The council could stick to the status quo and do nothing. There are no monuments such as statues or plaques in the area that reference or praise Baker.
Another option would be to install new interpretation in the area that discusses Baker’s links to the slave trade. The council could also approach the Civic Trust to ensure that this is discussed during public tours of the docks.
The council could also request the owners to remove the name of Baker’s Quay or install some form of public art in the area that could address and consider this part of history.
Whatever approach is preferred, the council would need to engage and reach an agreement with the site owners, according to the report.
The Pillar and Lucy warehouse
Samuel Baker also financed the nearby Pillar and Lucy warehouses. The building is directly linked to Baker but it does not obviously memorialise or commemorate him in any way.
The recommendation is to contextualise the warehouses as with Baker’s Quay in general. They say it should be very easy to install new interpretation in the area that discusses Baker’s link to the slave trade.
Charles II statue
Charles II’s contribution to the transatlantic slave trade is palpable and undeniable. He was a founding member of the Royal African Company which transported close to 150,000 enslaved Africans, mostly to the British Caribbean.
The review has come up with several possible recommendations for the statue of Charles II in St Mary’s Square. One of the possible outcomes could be to keep the statue as it is.
It is currently in such poor condition and so degraded that it could be argued that it fails to memorialise or glorify him. However, the council could decide to contextualise the statue which included discussion of the king’s role in the slavery economy.
Another recommendation is they could relocate the statue and store it in the Museum of Gloucester. This would allow the wider context of the statue to be discussed as part of a display. And their final option would be to remove the statue and place it in storage.
Admiral Henry Christian memorial
Henry Christian, who was born in 1828, was commissioned into the Royal navy in 1841 at the age 12. He gained the rank of post-captain in 1863 and soon afterwards took service on a 400-ton steamer to run the US blockage of Nassau during the American Civil War.
Christian’s boat apparently ferried cotton from Charleston to Nassau in the Bahamas which was then sent onto the cotton mills in Yorkshire. Since the Confederate States of America maintained legalised slavery, this cotton would have been the product of enslaved plantation labour.
There is a memorial to Henry Christian in Gloucester Cathedral which commemorates his service as Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Constabulary. The memorial owned by the Church of England so any actions would need to be agreed with cathedral authorities.
The review suggests one option would be to do nothing as it is one of a huge number of memorials in Gloucester Cathedral and is unlikely to generate special attention.
On the other hand, the memorial could be contextualised by adding some context to the memorial such as a nearby information panel outlining his role as a blockade runner and guides could discuss this role during tours.
Any recorded tours or online resources could also mention it. Another possibility is to remove the memorial but this is unlikely to be agreed by the Church of England.
Number 2 Clarence Street
This grade II listed building which dates back to 1832 is linked to the Collard Family. And Elizabeth Collard was the daughter of Samuel Lysons and married into the Collard family in 1799.
She was awarded compensation as an heir of J M Collard when slavery was abolished. He had owned an estate on Stony Gutty in St Thomas-in-the-East, Jamaica.
She and her son John M Collard are recorded as living at number 2 Clarence Street, Gloucester in 1851. The review suggests two possible outcomes.
The property does not obviously memorialise or celebrate the Collards and it may be that no action is needed. However, plaques or information panels could be installed to explain the building’s link to the Collards.