A painting from Daleham House, a stately home in southwest England, shows panoramic Sugar cane plantations dot the hillsides at Bridgetown Harbour, Barbados.
In another room, two statues depict kneeling black men holding scallop shells aloft, their ankles and necks bound with chains.
These works belong to William BraithwaiteHe owned Dyrham in the late 17th and early 18th centuries and, as Comptroller General of British Plantation Revenues, was responsible for overseeing the profits that rolled in from the colonies.
The National Trust, a nearly 130-year-old charity that looks after many of Britain’s treasured historic homes, has found that explaining the history of places like Dyrham can be controversial.
The group revised the exhibition to highlight the links between its dozens of properties and colonial-era exploitation and slavery, sparking outrage from some right-wing columnists and academics who said the group was “not interested in the content”. defendant trustwoke up”, suggesting that it presents an “anti-British” Historical Perspectiveand launched a campaign to undo some of the changes.
The ensuing fight—reminiscent of Confederate monuments in the United States — has been on social media for three years, In the right-wing newspapers of Britain.
So far, the National Trust has resisted the campaign and stood by its new exhibition and its references to colonialism and slavery. But the controversy has thrown the foundation into disarray, with its annual meeting already in Funding is not transparent Restore Trust is seeking to have its candidate accepted onto the charity’s council, an advisory group that works with the trust’s fund management committee.
‘Fashionable, divisive ideology’
The National Trust was founded in 1895 to protect natural and historic sites. It has spent 129 years acquiring stately homes, some owned by families who could no longer afford to maintain them after World War II, and miles of coastline and countryside, which it has opened to the public.
The organization’s 5.37 million members pay just £91 (about $115) a year for unlimited entry to more than 500 sites. Even if you’ve never been to a National Trust site, you’ve probably seen one in a period drama. Parts of Downton Abbey were set in Lacock Basildon Park in Wiltshire, near Reading Pride and Prejudice (2005) and Season 2 and 3Bridgetown”
Hilary McGrady, the foundation’s director general, said in an interview that despite its commitment to preserving history, it is always adapting to change. “The very idea that we might change is unsettling,” she said. “The fact is, the foundation is always changing.”
She points out that the houses didn’t always tell the stories of the “downstairs” servants, and when they began highlighting those stories in the 1950s, there was opposition. “But we now think of it as completely normal,” she says.
Ms McGrady said she could not understand claims that the trust was “waging a mad campaign to destroy history”.
The Restoring Trust organization was established in 2021, when the National Trust released A report Details of its 93 properties’ historical links to colonialism and slavery. Restore claims on its website that the National Trust is “driven by trendy, divisive ideologies” and calls on it to “restore a sense of welcome to all visitors without demonizing anyone’s history or heritage.”
Cornelia van der Poll, the current director of Restore and a lecturer in ancient Greek at Oxford University’s private Catholic College, believes that the historical perspective presented by some trusts is Out of focusIn an emailed statement for this article, she also noted what she called “the loss of professional curators and the authority of qualified experts in deciding how properties should be managed and presented.”
trust explain Its number of curators has doubled in the past five years.
Mary Beard, a classics expert and former Cambridge University professor, told The Times of London that the 2020 report “simply states the obvious: of course, some families have had a troubled past.” Praise Dyrham for its handling of history As an example of good curation: keep objects like statues of enslaved people, but put them in context.
Restore says on its website that it is “politically independent” and was founded by an individual. But the Good Law Project, a UK governance watchdog, says it is “politically independent”. Take legal action to find out who is behind Restore and identified that its website was owned by a private company, RT2021was established in April 2021 with the stated aim of “monitoring the activities of the National Trust”.
Ian Browne, legal manager at the Good Law Project, said Restore posed as a “grassroots organization that speaks for common sense” but had links to other right-wing advocacy groups. From 2021 to January this year, one of the group’s director Neil Record is Institute of Economic AffairsLibertarian think tank, current chairman of Net Zero Emissions Watch deny The world is in a “climate emergency”.
Mr. Record did not respond to a request for comment.
Restore also has support from right-wing figures Nigel FarageHe is a Brexit campaigner and is currently running for Member of the British Parliament.
“We have received thousands of donations and help from supporters. We think this is the fair definition of a grassroots movement,” said Dr van der Pol, who declined to elaborate on how Recovery was funded.
Ahead of the National Trust conference last November, Restore placed heavy advertising on social media and promoted its stance through numerous articles and media appearances.
But on the day of the meeting, National Trust achieves record membership numbers — 156,000 people voted and rejected all initiatives and candidates supported by Restore.
However, its agenda has caused some tension. After the results were announced, one man shouted: “You rigged the election!”
Experts said the wider results may reflect the British public’s disgust with the culture wars, with many telling pollsters they long for a quieter, more democratic society. More civilized political discourse.
According to the 2023 polls Written by University College London and More in CommonOf those surveyed, only 27% said “addressing political correctness and wokeness” was one of the most important issues facing the country.
The same study found that the National Trust is one of the most respected institutions in the country. By interpreting rather than removing controversial historical artifacts, the National Trust has shown that it “respects people enough to allow them to make their own decisions,” the study’s authors wrote.
Some trust members said the “anti-wokeness” campaign had prompted them to show stronger support for the group.
Judith Martin, 70, a member of the group for decades, said she began attending annual meetings only to make it clear that Restore did not represent the majority opinion.
“To try to divide us like this and to spark these fights when our resources are already so limited, I think it’s horrible,” she said, adding, “This fabrication of a culture war, I think is despicable.”
“Gentle recognition”
Visitors sipped tea and scones in the cafe after touring Dereham House late last year. Young families strolled the rolling hills of Dereham Park. Older couples walked hand in hand through the restored gardens.
A new sign near the slave statues says they “reveal the realities of the colonial system in the late 17th century” and tells visitors that if they “do not wish to see these objects” they can take an alternative route.
special Commissioned Poems The painting, which sits on a nearby table, reflects “a world where so much suffering coexists with so much abundance.”
Sally Davis, 60, said the displays were a “gentle nod to the past”.
Ms. Davis, who is white, and her husband, Richard Davis, 63, who is black, were visiting with their 2-year-old granddaughter, who was toddling down the path outside the house.
They said they lived nearby and came often. Mr Davis, whose parents are from Jamaica, was pleased to have a deeper background, especially the kneeling statue.
“When I first came here, the guide was a little concerned when he saw the statues, and I said, ‘Look, you don’t have to worry, it’s just one of those things,’ ” Mr. Davis said. “But you have to show it so people understand how a place like this came to be.”
