Bristol slave trade

Stroll through Bristol today and we’ll see a vibrant city, home to Brunel’s bridge, a natural gorge and contemporary street art renowned the world over. Yet behind Bristol’s streets, buildings and bridges lay dark secrets.

Throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Britain’s slave traders transported over 3 million people.  Some 500,000 slaves were carried on Bristol ships.

This trail explores a handful of the city’s seemingly everyday sights to uncover how Bristol’s slavery past still permeates life here 500 years on.

View and print off the route for free at Discovering Britain

This trail is based on material from:

- ‘The Bristol Slave Trade Trail’ written by Madge Dresser, Caletta Jordan and Doreen Taylor and published by Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery

- ‘Slavery Obscured: The Social History of the Slave Trade in an English Provincial Port’ by Madge Dresser (2001)