The family of one of Britain’s most esteemed prime ministers, William Gladstone, will depart from their Hawarden Estate home this week to visit Guyana and apologise for the role an ancestor played in the slave trade.
The visit coincides with the 200th anniversary of the Demerara rebellion, an uprising by enslaved Africans that many historians believe marked the beginning of the abolitionist movement.
William Gladstone (pictured top right) a four-time Liberal prime minister in the 19th century who resided in Hawarden, was the son of John Gladstone, a prominent slave owner in the British West Indies.
Charlie Gladstone (top right) and his family will journey to the Caribbean to offer a formal apology for their ancestor’s involvement in slavery and pledge financial support for continued research into the ramifications of the transatlantic slave trade.
When he learned of John Gladstone’s ties to slavery, Charlie was profoundly affected. He told the Observer, “I was devastated. I utterly detested the revelation. It was shocking, and it made me feel ill.”
“Slavery is a crime against humanity, and having a relative who partook in it is horrifying,” he stated.
Charlie, 59, is an author and entrepreneur employing around 100 individuals, notably at the Glynne Arms in Hawarden and the Hawarden Estate Farm Shop. He also presides over Gladstone’s Library.
Sir John Gladstone was a Scottish merchant who grew wealthy as a Demerara sugar-planter; he owned hundreds of slaves on his plantations in the lead-up to emancipation.
The 1823 revolt in the British colony of Demerara, which subsequently integrated into Guyana, originated on one of Gladstone’s properties.
Several historians argue that the uprising’s violent quelling hastened the end of slavery.
After slavery was abolished in 1833, John received the most significant compensation from the Slave Compensation Commission, totalling approximately £93,000 — today’s equivalent of about £10 million.
In 1831, during his first speech in the Commons, William Gladstone championed compensation for slaveholders.
Yet, by 1850, his kin saw him as a reformed man. The former leader eventually labelled slavery as “undeniably the most heinous crime in human history.”
Although situated in South America, Guyana belongs to Caricom, the combined economic and political alliance of Caribbean countries.
Joining Charlie on this trip will be his wife Caroline, son Felix, daughter Xanthe, brother Rob, and nephew Will Merison; they’ll land on Thursday.
During the launch of the University of Guyana’s International Institute for Migration and Diaspora Studies, the family will extend their formal apology.
Additionally, they are reported to be endorsing the institute with a generous £100,000 donation.
The schedule includes a church service to remember John Smith, an English missionary who tragically died in prison after being sentenced to death for endorsing the 1823 slave revolt. (DEESIDE.COM)
