Prince William has described the slave trade as ‘abhorrent’ – but did not directly apologize for the Royal Family’s role in it.
The Duke and. Duchess of Cambridge was met with protests upon their arrival. Prince William Jamaica, which has ‘already started’ the process of removing the. Queen as head of state.
Members of the countries. The Rastafarian community accused the royals of benefiting from the ‘blood, tears and sweat’ of Jamaican people.
In his speech at a lavish dinner on the fifth day of theirs. Caribbean tour, William said he felt his ‘profound sorrow’ at the forced transportation of millions of people from Africa to the. The Caribbean and North America – a trade British monarchs either supported or profited from during the. 17th and 18th centuries.
He echoed previous speeches by his father. Prince William describes the slave trade as an ‘appalling atrocity’ that ‘stains our history.
However, critics have noted how the future king did directly apologize, just as his father did. Charles had not during a recent trip to Barbados.
He said: ‘I strongly agree with my father, the Prince of. Wales, who said in Barbados last year that the appalling atrocity of slavery forever stains our history.
‘I want to express my profound sorrow. Slavery was abhorrent. And it should never have happened.’
‘While the pain runs deep, Jamaica continues to forge its future with determination, courage, and fortitude.
‘The strength and shared sense of purpose of the. Jamaican people, represented in your flag and motto, celebrate an invincible spirit.
What was the Royal Family’s role in slavery?
Charles II encouraged the expansion of the industry with his brother. Duke of York, later James II, invested their private funds in the. Royal African Company, which transported. Africans across the Atlantic.
The royal and the rest of the pro-slavery lobby would eventually lose the battle when. William Wilberforce and other abolitionists succeeded in passing the bill banning the slave trade in 1807.
‘It is this same spirit that spurred on the Windrush generation, who came to the United Kingdom to help rebuild after the Second World War.