Steps towards identifying new Black voters in 18th-century Westminster and Hertfordshire

A few months ago, the History welcomed a guest post by Dr Gillian Williamson with her groundbreaking research into John London, to date the earliest known Black voter in Britain, who lodged his vote in the 1749 by-election for Westminster. In this latest post, Dr Robin Eagles explains the potential discovery of further Black voters taking part in the same contest and subsequent polls in … Continue reading Steps towards identifying new Black voters in 18th-century Westminster and Hertfordshire

Profile of an 18th century Black Voter: George John Scipio Africanus

In a second blog for this year’s Black History Month, we are once again hearing from Helen Wilson, PhD candidate with the History of Parliament and the Open University. Within Helen’s research she has been uncovering the previously overlooked presence of Black voters in 18th century Britain, including figures like George Africanus, profiled below… The eighteenth century saw many geo-political expansions and retractions for the … Continue reading Profile of an 18th century Black Voter: George John Scipio Africanus

The Presence of Black Voters in the 18th and 19th Centuries

October is Black History Month in the UK, as institutions like the History of Parliament attempt to re-insert and highlight the Black experience into fields of history previously overlooking this. Here, we hear from Helen Wilson, PhD candidate with the History of Parliament and Open University, who is researching the Black and Mixed Ethnicity Presence in British Politics, 1750-1850. As Helen explains, despite significant barriers … Continue reading The Presence of Black Voters in the 18th and 19th Centuries