The London hospital funded by donors who invested in the slave trade
A new research project has identified that many historical donors to London's St Bartholomew’s Hospital were deeply involved in the transatlantic slave trade. The findings highlight the complex and often troubling origins of funding for many long-standing British public institutions.
Why it matters
Contributes to the ongoing societal discourse regarding the historical legacy of slavery and the ethical origins of institutional wealth.
Animation: Alexander Purcell. Illustrations by Diana Ejaita Enslaving nation Slavery The London hospital funded by donors who invested in the slave trade St Barts is one of many UK institutions whose benefactors were involved in the trafficking of enslaved Africans
Inside the Great Hall of St Bartholomew’s North Wing, alongside stately portraits of the apostle from whom London’s oldest hospital takes its name and King Henry VIII, extravagant commemorative boards adorn the walls.
The Great Hall was a grand, formal space where governors weighed their philanthropic donations and drafted their wills, many while investing in the stock of companies built on the trafficking of enslaved Africans. Today, many of those donors are commemorated in acrylic gold paint on the boards.
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