Black and British: A Forgotten History, from the acclaimed historian and star of 'Celebrity Traitors'

by David Olusoga

From 1765 to 1772 Sharp searched for the case, that might be brought to trial and that would force the judges to make a final determination on the legality of slavery in Britain. He was worldly enough to understand that taking on the institution of slavery in the colonies was, in the 1760s and 1770s, a futile task. In those decades the British slave trade and the plantation system were hurtling towards the zenith of profitability. Islands like Jamaica were among the most productive territories in the world and the planters and merchants of the West Indies a powerful political force. For now Sharp contented himself with seeking to prevent what he termed the ‘toleration’ of slavery in Britain, though his views on the slave trade were clear.