Legacies of Enslavement

The Legacies of Enslavement Special Initiative supports research, collaboration and public engagement exploring the histories, legacies and afterlives of enslavement, and how these histories continue to shape contemporary societies.

About the Initiative

Background and aims
Learn about the origins of the Initiative, its objectives and its approach to researching and addressing the legacies of enslavement.
Who we are
Meet the people leading and supporting the Initiative, and learn about the network of researchers, practitioners and partners involved in its work.
Join the network
Connect with researchers, students, practitioners and community partners working across disciplines and sectors.

Explore our work

A nineteenth‑century handwritten register listing enslaved people, showing names, ages, and physical descriptions. The page includes multiple entries in ink, with notes on scars, marks, and injuries, written in cursive script.
Exploring Legacies of Enslavement

Read articles by Early Career Researchers exploring the historical and contemporary legacies of enslavement.
The South Front of the Senate House, and West End of St Mary's Church in the University of Cambridge, 1799, Etching and aquatint with hand coloring on moderately thick, moderately textured, cream wove paper
Cambridge Legacies of Enslavement Reports

Explore reports, inquiries and research projects examining historical links to enslavement across Cambridge colleges, departments and institutions.
A walkway covered in orange autumn leaves with several people walking ahead toward a black iron gate and historic stone building.
Addressing Legacies at Cambridge

Learn how colleges, departments and institutions are responding to research findings through memorialisation, education, engagement and other initiatives.
A person working in a kitchen stands beside a stove, stirring a large pot with a long wooden utensil. The setting includes metal cookware, a tiled wall, and various kitchen equipment in the background.

Featured research

A reflection on the making of the Black Town & Gown documentary, exploring Black history in Cambridge through community voices, archival research and film.

Read the full blog

Get involved

Audience listen as Professor João José Reis presents the lecture from a small stage in front of a powerpoint slide
Attend events

Join seminars, workshops, film screenings and public discussions exploring the legacies and afterlives of enslavement.
Students looking at whiteboard with handwritten notes and ideas
Funding and opportunities

Find grants, fellowships, scholarships and calls that support research, engagement and collaboration.
A person standing by a window inside a quiet university hallway, looking down at something in their hands, with warm hanging lights illuminating the long corridor.
Join the network

Connect with researchers, students, practitioners and community partners working across disciplines.

News

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22 Jun 2026

Legacies of Enslavement Special Initiative awards funding to five projects

15 Jun 2026

Fitzwilliam Museum named finalist for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2026

Three University of Cambridge students walk down the stairs in front of tall white pillars and banners outside the Fitzwilliam Museum.

11 Jun 2026

New publication on grassroots artmaking and activism in the UK

Front cover of 'Grassroots artmaking'

11 Jun 2026

Landed Blackness: Post-emancipation marronage and Black autonomy

Early twentieth-century African American family standing outside a wooden home in Blackdom, New Mexico, one of the best-known Black towns founded after emancipation.

10 Jun 2026

Legacies of Enslavement and contemporary violence in Liberia and Haiti

Photograph of event speakers

9 Jun 2026

Digitisation project reconnects Igbo Ukwu with historic artefacts

Close-up of an Igbo‑Ukwu artefact
Cambridge Market Place, with Great St Mary's, looking towards the senate House and King's College Chapel

2022 Report and Response

Explore the 2022 Legacies of Enslavement Report and the University's response to its recommendations.

Read the Report Read the Vice-Chancellor's Response to the Report