Black Victorians Hidden in History by Keshia N. Abraham, John Woolf

 

Black Victorians have been overlooked, and forgotten, yet they played an important part in British Victorian history. Filled with intriguing and diverse individuals, this book restores them to history, and it provides an illuminating and fascinating look at how they dealt with terrible situations, including slavery and racism. Black Victorians covers Black people from different classes, and different professions, including the arts. It is not a story of victimhood, but rather one of agency.

This book tells the stories of people from the margins of society, such as Edward Albert, who became a cook, and a pastry chef who sold his own memoir, and William Flinn, who worked on vessels on the high seas and survived for thirty-eight years inside Broadmoor. Then there are those who protested like William Cuffay, who advocated for Chartism and eventually plotted against the Queen. He was transported to Australia.

Other people with fascinating stories include Sarah Forbes Bonetta in whom Queen Victoria took a special interest, the famous actor Ira Aldridge and the abolitionist Sarah Parker Remond. Most of the Black people covered in this book either achieved much in their professions, or fought for their rights against prejudice and discrimination.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.