Abolition and Empire in Sierra LEone and Liberia

In 1787, Black settlers from London arrived on the west coast of Africa. They were part of a utopian project, a plan to end the slave trade from Africa and demonstrate the benefits of British ‘Civilisation, Commerce, and Christianity.’

Over thirty years later, a few hundred miles down the coast, another boat of Black settlers - from the US - set up another ‘back to Africa’ experiment.

Looking at the transnational anti-slavery colonization movement from the ground up, Abolition and Empire in Sierra Leone and Liberia makes a case for thinking about abolitionism as an imperial policy - one with surprisingly different outcomes for the US and Britain.

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