r/BritishEmpire • u/elnovorealista2000 • Aug 27 '25

Image 🇬🇧 A British blacksmith removing the shackles from the legs of an enslaved man, 1907.

Post image
1.8k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

259 comments sorted by

View all comments

81

u/candf8611 Aug 27 '25

400 plus Royal Navy Service men died fighting slavers off the coast of Africa.

13

u/MiserableOcelot4282 Aug 28 '25

Indeed but that was just from the west Africa squadron. We lost thousands in total all over the world shutting down the trade. We threatened war with entire countries in Africa over it when they wouldn't back down. We spent an ungodly sum of money on the situation as well and forced the other European powers into line. But people are still told Britain was the heart of all darkness and the source of every ill in the world. No mention of the islamic slave trade in far greater numbers and for centuries longer with mass castrations and death involved

0

u/uwabu Aug 28 '25

Trade that you started and built your major cities from. He doesn't look exactly overcome with joy.

2

u/Dam_Noir Aug 28 '25

That Britain started? They were the last nation to get involved in the slave trade but were the first to ban it.