Aberdeen university’s £166m nd bequests linked to slave trade
bursaries and endowments received by Aberdeen University from benefactors linked to the slave trade would be worth up to £166 million today, a new report has found.
The figure was calculated by Dr Richard Anderson, a lecturer in the history of slavery, who has spent two years researching the role played by slavery in the history of Marischal and King’s Colleges, which later became the University of Aberdeen.
Although the university never owned any enslaved people, Dr Anderson found that during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries both King’s College and Marischal College benefited from donors’ wealth derived from the labour of enslaved people in the Caribbean and colonial North America.
Marischal College had by far the strongest links of the two, in terms of wealth linked to colonial slavery, the number of students who migrated to colonies of enslavement, and the number of students from the British Caribbean. Dr Anderson used different measures of inflation to demonstrate the scale of the historical bequests. Were all of them to be donated in the present day, they would be worth between £17,358,000 and £166,116,000, depending on the methodology.
The report also notes the university commemorates benefactors connected to slavery through named bursaries for students as well as paintings and heraldry located on university property.
Research has identified the university still has restricted endowments with a current capital value of £373,238, which can be traced to the legacy of slavery.
Professor James N’dow has now been appointed to lead a university-wide “listening exercise” to consider further actions.
The university has also said it will “explore options” with the Scottish charity regulator to “release or relax fund restrictions that might support strategies arising from the listening exercise”.
Aberdeen University principal George Boyne said: “When we think of transatlantic slav ery, we often think of ports like Liverpool, Bristol or Glasgow, so the connections of northeast Scotland to this trade in human suffering have long been overlooked.
“This report is part of ongoing work to shine a light on those connections and to confront uncomfortable truths from the past. While the University of Aberdeen may not have been directly involved in the slave trade, it is clear that many of our graduates and benefactors were and that the legacies they left mean those connections still exist today.
“This report is a step towards greater understanding and reflection on this important topic. We are committed to addressing this legacy, so now look forward to listening to suggestions about what actions we should take and then engaging with them on the way forward.”
Vanessa Mabonso Nzolo, student president from 2022 to 2024, said: “As part of the student and staff cohort in our community who have worked towards an anti-racist university over the years, we are looking forward to the impact of the report.”
This report is to shine a light on connections and confront uncomfortable truths from the past