Wales and the memorialisation of slavery in 2007

Abstract

This essay explores the way in which the bicentenary of the abolition of the British slave trade was commemorated at heritage sites in Wales. Wales, as a constituent part of the UK newly enfranchised by democratic institutions, and with a long history of political radicalism, had never previously considered its own relationship with the overseas slave-owning economy that sustained its landed estates and that its industries served. In this essay, the author explores how Wales, relying on its heritage tourist industry, has long projected a nostalgic and Romantic self-image, but that nonetheless a number of heritage organisations took the bicentenary as an opportunity to broaden their interpretation of the past and to engage with a wider audience. The author also discusses how other agencies, thwarted by internal division and lack of commitment, were unable to fully galvanise their staff to the demands of the bicentenary. The author looks at how large government-funded organisations as well as both large and small charities, by commemorating the bicentenary, enabled Wales to rethink its own past by providing a new set of tools with which to do so. This, the author argues, has opened the way for a more inclusive view of heritage and enabled participation by groups that had hitherto had good reason not to engage with museums and visitor sites. The bicentenary was open to both challenge and criticism, but by exploring the ways in which these organisations faced 2007, the author shows both the strengths and weaknesses of heritage agencies in Wales and discusses how such opportunities encouraged a reappraisal of the country's heritage.