'Don't topple Blake statue - he's on the right side of history' claim Bridgwater historians

They say his career is a source of pride for the town - and his only involvement in slavery was freeing them.

They have spoken out following a Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol saw the statue of slave trader Edward Colston torn down and thrown in the harbour.

Shortly afterwards the spotlight shone on all the monuments of Britain’s slave trading past and a ‘topple list’ was drawn up with historical figures like Nelson, Drake and Cromwell. 

Concerned that questions might be asked about Bridgwater's own Admiral Robert Blake Statue, Bridgwater Town Council leader Cllr Brian Smedley assembled a socially distanced convention of local historians to investigate whether there was any cause for the statue to come down.

However the town’s leading local history experts are in unanimous agreement that his iconic statue must remain in its place of honour on the Cornhill. 

The local historians say Blake, Bridgwater's MP who died in 1657, was "on the right side of history" and freed the slaves from the Barbary pirates of North Africa.

When he died, he left money to the people of Bridgwater, his family and to his servants.

Town council leader Brian Smedley said: "Blake was on the right side of that history.

"It was after Blake and the Republic that the restored Monarchy jumped feet first into the slave trade when it set up the Royal Africa Company.

"That’s Charles II and his brother James II -who was the persecutor of Bridgwater people after Sedgemoor and the last Monarch to set foot in this town for 300 years, contenting himself with hanging drawing and quartering the Bridgwater rebels and then transporting the rest.

"And it was that same R.A.C that Edward Colston was part of as a Tory MP and an open slave trader and who quite rightly deserved a symbolic temporary dunking."

Chris Sidaway said: "Robert Blake was not a slaver but a Christian gentleman who had a black man-servant (which was prevalent at the time).

"He had three servants (not slaves) two white and one black.

"In his Will, the white servants (James Knowles and Nicholas Bartlett) received £10 each whilst his black servant Domingo received £50.

"There are of course far guiltier parties with regard to the slave trade - Drake and Hawkins were sponsored on their slavery exploits by Queen Elizabeth I, who profited enormously from the returns: King Charles II was an enthusiastic investor in slavery and most C17th aristocracy benefited, as did the Church of England.

"Most of the C18th merchant wealth was underpinned by slavery – cotton, sugar, cocoa, coffee and tobacco. But not in Bridgwater, where the non-conformist merchants were against it."

Dr Miles Kerr-Peterson said: "As to Blake, I wouldn’t personally consider there to be any good reason at all for his statue in Bridgwater to be even considered for removal.

"It was raised partly as a local celebration of civic pride and part of a wider celebration of the town’s connections to the sea.

"I’d say that our Blake is celebrated as a local hero because of his qualities and his achievements as an individual, not necessarily as an expression of any institution his reforms led to create.

"As to Blake the person, I think there’s little that can be levelled against him – unless you’re a hardcore Royalist of course.

"He was obliquely involved with Cromwell’s suppression of Ireland, but Blake’s role was to bob around outside Kinsale waiting for Prince Rupert, and Blake explicitly turned down a promotion to become a Major General on land for Cromwell, who he had ideological differences with anyway.

"Likewise, Blake was involved in an overall strategy that seized Jamaica, but he was again bobbing around outside Cadiz while that happened, and was not the author of said strategy.

"Personally, as a boy growing up in Bridgwater, although I only vaguely knew who Blake was, I always took the statue as a wonderful symbol that even if you came from Bridgwater, you could still be a success and change the world.

"And Blake had good qualities worth celebrating – he fought against what he saw as the tyranny of a bad king, his military successes were a direct result of hard graft in supply and dedication in leadership, and he specifically went out of his way in North Africa to address the problem of Barbary raids on England far beyond the brief he was given.

"He was also unafraid to speak in gruff tones to the crowned heads of Europe."

Lecturer Matthew Smith said: "It is only right that society has a say over which monuments are appropriate representations of our social values.

"However, it is important to remember that such monuments reflect the value of the times in which they were erected.

"In the case of John Cassidy’s statue of Edward Colston, it was created in 1895 to commemorate Colston’s ‘philanthropy’.

"Clearly, attitudes towards race were far less progressive in the Victorian era and, personally, I have long been uncomfortable about the 'whitewashing' of Colston’s involvement in the Atlantic slave trade.

"Regarding Admiral Blake, I am not aware of any reason as to why the community would consider removing his statue.

"Among Blake’s many achievements as ‘Father of the Navy’ were the introduction of the first ever set of naval rules and regulations, as well as new techniques to conduct blockades and landings. Indeed, even Nelson would go on to remark, 'I do not reckon myself equal to Blake'.

"Ultimately, it is up to the citizens of Bridgwater to decide the fate of their statue."

"I hope they use it as an opportunity to learn more about the fascinating history of a local boy made good.”

Blake Museum historian Tony Woolrich said: “Blake was a member of a company trading in North Africa and the Mediterranean as a young man. He was never a slave trader."

Curator Mike Searle said: "I think any attempt to have Blake’s statue removed would receive great hostility from the folk of Bridgwater.

"Just look at the time the statue was relocated and the anger that caused, and which still resonates today."

Author Roger Evans said: "I would find any attempt to denigrate the name of Admiral Blake as offensive.

"He was a committed Parliamentarian who gave his life in the service of his country.

"To even suggest that his statue should be removed would offend the vast majority of sensibly–minded Bridgwater citizens who respect him as our best-known local hero."