Bristol Cathedral. Mathew Black//flickr.cc(by-nc)
Events held during the month of November in Bristol are much like those held across the country. We have our fair share of fireworks displays, we mark Remembrance Sunday, and some say the Christmas decorations appear far too early. But the month of November is unique in Bristol for the many annual rituals centred around the person of Edward Colston.
Edward Colston (1636-1721) was a Bristol son and Merchant Venturer, described by his city centre statue as ‘virtuous and wise’, and once a top official in the Royal Africa Company, which had a monopoly on trade along Africa’s west coast during the 17th and 18th centuries. He was without doubt a great benefactor of the city, but also a huge personal beneficiary of the slave trade. As such, his legacy is now torn between those who value his philanthropic deeds and contribution to Bristolian civic life, and those who see him as an embodiment of historical injustice.
