People
of African origin and descent had been present in Britain from as
early as Roman times. The Roman army was made up of citizens from
all over its massive empire, many of them being Berbers or Moors from
North Africa.
There
were so many black people in England during the reign of Queen
Elizabeth I, that in 1596 she demanded that they be expelled
from the country.
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| Our
Untold Stories |
There
are many references, though few have any great detail, to black
people in Britain from the mid-15th century onwards.
In
1555 five Africans came to Britain to learn English in order to
ease the process of trade as interpreters. There were black musicians
playing at the courts of King James IV of Scotland, and of Henry
VII and Henry VIII.
Queen
Elizabeth I had an African entertainer and black page in her court,
and James I had a group of black minstrels and his wife had black
servants.
African
slaves were increasingly seen in Britain from as early as the 1570s.
Their use fell into three main categories. The majority were as
household servants, while others performed the role of prostitutes
or sexual conveniences for well-to-do Englishmen and Dutchmen or
as court entertainers.
Elizabethan
times
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| Bernard's
father, Daddy West, was a founder member of the West Indian
United Action Group |
There
were so many black people in England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth
I, that in 1596 she demanded that they be expelled from the country.
There
was a fear that they might be taking jobs away from English citizens
and also a concern that they were 'infidels'. Yet another edict
from the Queen, at first it brought no action. However it was then
followed up by a Royal Proclamation, issued in 1601, and a Lubeck
merchant, Caspar van Senden, was licensed to remove all 'negroes
and blackamoores'.
Colonisation
of the Caribbean
BritainÂ’s
involvement in the colonisation of the Caribbean and America from
the early 1600s, led to the subsequent enslavement of millions of
Africans to work on the tobacco, cotton and sugar plantations.
The
enormous profits made by British slave merchants were spent on buying
land and building great houses. Much of the money was then invested
in industry and business, fuelling the Industrial Revolution.
The
rise in numbers of the black population in Britain can be directly
attributed to the development of the British colonies in the 'West
Indies. It became fashionable to have black servants - a status
symbol or even a fashion accessory!
Many
portraits of wealthy individuals painted during this period show
black servants posed alongside their masters like pets. Soon, those
less affluent were also able to own black slaves.
»
See 'A Gloucestershire history'
» See
'The World Wars'
» See
'Slavery and abolition'
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