Blackpresence

Walter Tull was born in Folkestone on 28th April 1888. His father was a carpenter from Barbados who had moved to Folkestone and married a local woman. By the age of nine, Walter had lost both his parents, and when he was 10 he and his brother Edward were sent to a Methodist orphanage in ...

A Tale of a Forgotten People By Vava Tampa Outside public eyes in a remote corner of Africa and literally under the world's radar screen, a country is sinking in a river of blood! Mothers crying! Fathers and sons trading hot metals! Neighbours, in alliance with local armed groups, seething through the thick dense forest to ...

An MP has begun campaigning for the Military Cross to be awarded posthumously to a former Northampton Town footballer killed in World War I. Walter Tull, the first black infantry officer in the British Army, was mentioned in dispatches for "gallantry and coolness" on the Italian Front. He died in action in 1918, but because his family ...

It appears that John Blanke, an African trumpeter, was a regular musician at the courts of both Henry VII and Henry VIII. Musicians' payments were noted in the accounts of the Treasurer of the Chamber, who was responsible for paying the wages. There are several payments recorded to a 'John Blanke, the blacke trumpeter'. This trumpeter ...

Israel refuses to let them give blood Israel got caught throwing away Ethiopian blood from the blood banks. A similar disclosure a decade ago sparked protests and widespread outrage in a community that has long complained of racial discrimination. "We are healthy people, like everyone else," said 24-year-old Galit Maarat,  "It's unjust, a terrible affront."  There are ...

The Visual Representation, Role and Origin of Black Soldiers in British Army Regiments During the Early Nineteenth Century.
Presented by Mr John D Ellis as part of the requirement of the MA Degree in Nineteenth Century Culture and Society.
University of Nottingham, September 2000.

It would of course be easy to leave such men as “faceless individuals”,however, military records from the period are sufficiently accurate that we are able to examine their careers. Below are the biographical and service details of eleven soldiers, who are fairly representative of those being found by my research. NB. All dates are given in the British manner, all spelling as found in original records. West Indies Born.

Rwandan Genocide: Why it happened and Why it shouldn’t have happen The year 2004 marked the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide in which 1,000,000 Rwandans were slaughtered over the course of 100 days, although some officials reported a span of 8 weeks….