Sweden became a slave nation with the takeover of the Caribbean island Saint Barthélemy in 1785. Serfdom had been abolished in 1335 and as Swedish law did not regulate slavery a version of the French slave laws, the Code noir – the black law – was introduced in 1787.
Fredrik Thomasson, historian at Uppsala University, will share with us his research on the justice system in the colony. He especially focuses on how the enslaved and free black population was treated and punished by the Swedish court. This almost century long colonial period (1785–1878) has been overlooked in Swedish historiography, and reasons for this amnesia will be discussed.
The talk will be held in English.
