Popular historic dramas like Bridgerton, Hamilton and Sanditon sometimes receive criticism that their diverse casts are historically inaccurate. But in fact there have been people of color in Britain and France since Roman times. By the 18th century the trans Atlantic slave trade brought more people of African decent to Europe then ever before. In 1768 there were about 15,000 black people living in London. Many were brought their as enslaved servants and sailors. But some had the right mixture of talent and luck to rise to the upper echelons of society, becoming celebrities and even aristocrats. Today we’ll met 7 prominent people of African and mixed heritage who lived in Britain or France in the 18th Century. Among them a King’s secret daughter, an icon of both Sport and music, two authors who spoke out against slavery, and a lady of wealth and refinement who would have fit perfectly into the world of Bridgerton. Here are their stories...

Louise Marie-Thérèse

Ignatius Sancho

Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges

Olaudah Equiano

Dido Elizabeth Belle

Jean Amilcar

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas

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Intro Music: Baroque Coffee House by Doug Maxwell

Music: Brandenburg Concerto No4-1 BWV1049 - Classical Whimsical by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100303

Artist: http://incompetech.com/

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