The Unfortunate Colonel Despard: “Governor of Belize”, Anti-racist, Democrat, Executed as a Traitor 1803

Colonel Edward Despard was executed in London in 1803 as a terrorist and traitor. However, the seeds of his radicalism were sown on the other side of the world, during his military service in the Caribbean. A patriotic war hero who fought alongside Nelson, he fell from favour with the British government after he was appointed governor of Belize and allocated equal shares of land to black and white settlers.

Recalled to Britain, he shocked London society with his mixed race marriage, and his pursuit of racial equality and political rights steered him towards the revolutionary underground.

Speaker: Mike Jay

Mike Jay is an author and historian who has written several books on the revolutionary politics of the 1790s. Visit mikejay.net for further information.

This event is the fifth of eight talks in the series titled The British Business of Slavery, curated by Deborah Lavin.

Tickets: individual tickets £5, students and participating society members £3. Series ticket £30, students and participating society members £21.