Plaque addressing legacies of slavery added to Edward Colston statue plinth in Bristol

A new plaque has been installed on the plinth of the former statue of Edward Colston in Bristol City Centre, aiming to educate the public about the statue’s history.

Famously thrown into Bristol’s harbour during the Black Lives Matter Protests in 2020, the statue of Edward Colston had been controversial for some time, with rights groups calling for it to be removed or altered to reflect a more inclusive history. 

Edward Colston was a merchant in the city during the late 1600s who made most of his wealth from the transatlantic slave trade as a member of the Royal African Company.

Colston is thought to have transported over 80,000 men, women and children from Africa to the American colonies between 1672 and 1689. 

On his death in 1721, Colston donated much of his wealth to Bristol charities, leaving a legacy of buildings, streets and memorials named after him. 

The statue was installed in 1895, with its plinth claiming it as having been “erected by citizens of Bristol as a memorial of one of the most virtuous and wise sons of their city”. 

The new plaque, erected almost five years after Colston was toppled, now acknowledges the role Colston played in the transatlantic slave trade, as well as the events in 2020. 

Image credit via X @beardedjourno

It reads: “On 13 November 1895, a statue of Edward Colston (1636-1721) was unveiled here.

“In the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, the celebration of Colston was increasingly challenged given his prominent role in the enslavement of African people.

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“On 7 June 2020, the statue was pulled down during Black Lives Matter protests and rolled into the Floating Harbour. Following consultation with the city in 2021, the statue entered the collections of Bristol City Council’s museums.”

Speaking on the new plaque, Councillor Tony Dyer, Leader of Bristol City Council, said: “I am pleased to see this plaque finally installed on the Colston plinth following a considered conversation on its future by residents and organisations.

“It presents a moment of reflection for our city and for many communities across Bristol and offers residents and visitors the opportunity to learn more about our city’s complex past”. 

These changes have sparked controversy, with Conservative City Councillor Richard Eddy calling it “utterly shameful” when the plaque was first proposed in November. 

He went on to argue that “deleting the reference to Edward Colston, one of Bristol’s greatest sons, being a benefactor is outrageous – an utterly historical revision that is worthy of the Nazis”. 

The Colston statue is now on display at M Shed, as part of a larger exhibition focusing on Bristol’s history with the slave trade, an initiative designed to confront the city’s difficult past. 

This comes after the University of Bristol removed the Edward Colston dolphin emblem with ties to slavery from its logo.

Featured image credit via X @beardedjourno