Saul David

Cry Freedom

Bury the Chains: The British Struggle to Abolish Slavery

By

Macmillan 431pp £20 order from our bookshop

Human Cargo: A Journey Among Refugees

By

Chatto & Windus 302pp £12.99 order from our bookshop

On 22 May 1787 twelve men – nine Quakers and three Anglicans – met at a central London printing shop to form a committee whose sole aim was the abolition of the British slave trade. Within twenty years, despite the opposition of the powerful West Indian lobby, they had achieved their objective. In 1834 the existing slaves of the British Empire were emancipated. It is an extraordinary tale, and Adam Hochschild, prize-winning author of King Leopold’s Ghost, does it full justice.

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