|
|
 |
| |
Thanks for your replies
•
I READ with interest the responses to my query of the Rule Britannia song (Britannia is for freedom, Jan 25).
I would like to say thanks to the three people who gave their time to reply – thank them for giving me the history, their knowledge and understanding.
I find it very inspiring to know that people read and feel the need to respond – I feel enlightened. Thank you so much to each and every one of you.
JBL, NW1
Full name and address supplied
• MY understanding is that slavery was never legal in Britain during the times of the ‘slave trade’. For example, this from an address by ex-slave Frederick Douglass to an English audience in 1846:
“Liberty was inseparable from the British soil; the moment a slave stood on British ground he was free. The moment a slave set foot on English ground, his spirit walked forth in majesty, and his frame swelled with the consciousness of freedom...”
This does not seem to fit very well with the description of Professor Bogdanor’s lectures (Asking the question of who runs London today? Jan18), “...focus on slavery, 200 years after its abolition in England.”
As someone who had family (including a brother and two sisters) die as slaves in a Soviet labour camp I believe Britain’s record, as measured by the standards of the time, is something people should be proud of.
It should not belittled as it often is now.
No, Rule Britannia should not be banned. I would suggest the writer fills his lungs to the full and sings it with gusto next time.
AG, NW3
Full name and address
|
 |
|
|
|
