Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2009
Bristol Radical History Group will be participating in the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival, 17th-19th July 2009.
Spring 2009 Events
These events are now over, details can be seen here.
The Seven Stars Plaque
Plaque Unveiling
The plaque was unveiled on Friday 1st May as part of the Spring 2009 Programme of events. Find out more about these events here.
Download an printable invite to the unveiling (650KB jpeg file), click on the thumbnail below to see a preview.
The Seven Stars Plaque in Mike Baker's Workshop.
What Is The Seven Stars Plaque
There is now £2247 in the plaque fund, we still need £850
Bristol Radical History Group helped raise funds for a new plaque outside The Seven Stars pub in Thomas Lane, Bristol. The pub is not only an important historical landmark in Bristol but also holds a unique place within world history.
The Seven Stars, and the help given by Landlord Thompson, played a major role in enabling Thomas Clarkson gather evidence which changed British Public Opinion, demonstrating first the terrible fate that befell sailors, and then the even more horrific fate of the enslaved.
The pub already has a blue plaque, but this barely depicts the actual importance of the pub - both nationally and internationally. In fact this blue plaque does not even mention the anti-slavery movement or use phrase "slave trade", only that Clarkson stayed at the pub while gathering information concerning the conditions on slave ships.
The blue plaque outside The Seven Stars
in Thomas Lane, Bristol.
New studies initiated by Bristol Radical History Group revealed a set of amazing coincidences that symbolise the decades of struggle that finally led to the end of large scale slaving.
The new plaque, designed by local artists, is made of cast aluminium and painted with motifs that depict Thomas Clarkson, the pub itself and references to the slave trade and anti-slavery movement.
The new Seven Stars plaque.
Why not celebrate Thomas Clarkson's links with the Seven Stars by quaffing a pint of Abolition Ale at the pub istself? And while you are there why not buy a copy of Cry Freedom, Cry Seven Stars, a Bristol Radical History Pamphlet which is being sold to raise money for the new plaque.
If you would like to find out more about future fund raising events keep checking this page. Better still to find out about about all Bristol Radical History Events click here and join the email list.
- Find out more about the remarkable history of The Seven Stars and why it is of international historical importance.
- Read the account of Thomas Clarkson at The Seven Stars that was found behind the bar.
- To see find out exactly where The Seven Stars is click here.
- Visit The Abolition Project to find out more about Thomas Clarkson and other abolitionists.
- See a video of Mike Baker being interviewed as he works on the plaque.
Previously In Radical History …
Bristol Radical History Week 2006
28th October to 5th November 2006
32 Events, Over 9 Days at 7 Venues. Bristol Radical History Week 2006 was a series of events aimed at opening up to public scrutiny some of the hidden and misrepresented history of Bristol. Rather then concentrating on royals, famous engineers or wealthy merchants, Bristol Radical History Week was concerned with the proper people of Bristol. The mass of sometime rebellious and mutinous people who had their own agendas to fulfil. Lectures, debates, music, art, film, re-enactments and (if you can believe it) more.
Slavery - The Hidden History
4th to 15th March 2007
March 2007 was the 200th anniversary of the parliamentary abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. This was a series of events to both mark and critique the occasion. In a series of public lectures and debates we examined some of the areas of the history that were neglected by the official events. We also examined the links between punk, beer and the abolitionist movement in Bristol.
The BRH Summer Party On Brandon Hill
19th August 2007
Despite the vagaries of the English summer of 2007, a small but feisty mob of radical historians, skate boarders and cider drinkers gathered on Brandon Hill in Clifton. We were both celebrating the 175th anniversary of the invasion of the Great Reform Dinner and protesting against the dispersal order served on Bristol citizens this summer. What is the connection?
Bristol Radical History Week 2007 - Pirates, Witches & Smugglers
27th October to 6th November 2007
Who were these ‘outcasts’? Why are we so fascinated by them? Do their villainous representations carry clues to their real nature? Another heady brew of lectures, debates, film, outings, story telling, music, cider and the now infamous Pirate Booze Cruise.
The Seven Stars Plaque Project
January 2008 – May 2009
Bristol Radical History Group raised over £3000 for a new plaque outside The Seven Stars pub in Thomas Lane, Redcliffe, Bristol. It was at the Seven Stars that abolisionist Thomas Clakson met Landlord Thompson and began taking statements from sailors who had worked on slave ships. The pub is not only an important historical landmark in Bristol but also holds a unique place within world history.
Down With The Fences - The Struggle For The Global Commons
Thursday May 1st – Sunday May 11th 2008
From Magna Carta to the enclosure rioters of the Forest of Dean; from the stripping of the oil commons of the 20th century to the enclosure of the peoples’ game in the Premier League; from the rise of the corporations to the massive gentrification programme launched in our cities, we examined the process of enclosure, the forces that drive it and some of the historical and current confrontations that have occurred as a result.
Bristol Radical History Week 2008 - Off With Their Heads
Saturday October 25th – Tuesday November 4th 2008
Assassins, Plots & Regicide - 10 days of lectures,
debates, gigs and 'happenings' dedicated to
the men and women who have attempted to
instigate political change, through fair
means or foul. Join us, as we explore the
past to discover the present.
Spring 2009
April - June 2009
We began with future utopian visions (Nowtopia), consided the hidden histories of seminal events of the 1980s (Hillsborough and The Miners’ Strike) and championed Thomas Paine. To top it all we unveiled a plaque on the Seven Stars Pub to commemorate the abolitionist Thomas Clarkson and the Bristol sailors who blew the whistle on the slave trade.
Other people's events are now posted in the News section.
