Essential Information
| Type | Events and festivals |
|---|---|
| Location |
National Maritime Museum
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| Date and Times | Returning in 2024 |
| Prices | Free |
On 23 August 1791, enslaved people on the island of Saint Domingue (modern-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic) rose up against French colonial rule.
The uprising played a crucial role in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.
That's why, on 23 August each year, the National Maritime Museum commemorates International Slavery Remembrance Day and the long struggle for emancipation throughout the world.
2023 event programme
From talks to tours, find out what's taking place in and around the National Maritime Museum.
Opening ceremony
Come and listen to a performance given by the Ethno Vox choir and our keynote speaker, Rasheeda Page-Muir. A TEDx speaker, poet and award-winning community organiser, Rasheeda has spent over a decade providing a platform for social and political debate amongst young people in Woolwich and its surrounding areas.
11am-11.30am | The World Reimagined Globes, North Lawns or on the Great Map if raining.
Curator discussion
Join our Curator of World History & Cultures to explore a selection of fascinating, moving and powerful images from our collections. Chose an island, country or region to hear stories from that part of the world, including how different people fought against slavery.
11.30am - 12.30pm and 1.30pm - 2.30pm | Parkside entrance, Floor 0
Snippets of local history
Join the Caribbean Social Forum to find out more about Greenwich's link to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans.
11.30am - 3.30pm | Propeller Space, Floor 0
Games without wires
Take a break with the Caribbean Social Forum and play a variety of games.
11.30am - 4pm | Figurehead Space, Floor 0
Freedom fighters trail
Head to the Atlantic Worlds gallery for the launch of our digital trail, created by historian Stella Dadzie. Join Stella to uncover stories of resistance, drawn from the National Maritime Museum's collections.
11.45am - 12.45pm | Atlantic Worlds gallery, Floor 1
Creative connections
Join Eli Anderson for traditional storytelling focusing on wellbeing and healing (suitable for all ages).
11.45am - 12.15pm; 1.30pm - 2pm; 2.30pm - 3pm | Voyagers gallery, Floor 0
Outdoor art
Take time to explore The World Reimagined globes on the lawns of the National Maritime Museum, covering themes from racial justice to emancipation. Join art historian, Fiona Compton for exclusive tours around the installation.
12pm - 1pm and 2pm - 3pm
daughter(s) of diaspora
Watch the first public screening of daughter(s) of diaspora. Produced and directed by researcher Dr Nydia A. Swaby, the artwork is rooted in the afterlife of transatlantic slavery and colonialism.
Screening and panel discussion 12:45pm - 1.45pm | Lecture Theatre, Floor 0
Live performances by Foluke Taylor, Selena Seballo and Jahmila Heath 2.30pm - 3pm | Atlantic Worlds gallery, Floor 1
Repeated screening of daughter(s) of diaspora without panel discussion 3.30pm - 4pm | Lecture Theatre, Floor 0
Interviewing objects
Join the Deptford People's Heritage Museum to critically engage with objects in the Atlantic Worlds gallery.
1pm - 2pm | Atlantic Worlds Gallery, Floor 1
Seeing ourselves in the archives
Visit the Caird Library to look at records depicting people of African descent with artist Sharon Walters and host of the Seeing Ourselves podcast plus historian, Nadia Denton.
1pm - 1.45pm and 2.30pm - 3.15pm | Caird Library, Floor 1
Interactive workshops
Hear from Jay Percy, British Afro-Caribbean medicine woman, artist and spiritual podcaster for a talk and workshop charting the history of spiritual herbalism across the African Diaspora. Suitable for ages 12+.
Spiritual Herbalism Talk | 2pm - 2.45pm, Lecture Theatre, Floor 0
Interactive Workshop | 3pm - 4pm, Learning Space, Floor 0
We're gonna tell our story
Listen to spoken word by poet and youth activist, Divine Mankumbani.
2pm - 2.10pm | Atlantic Worlds Gallery, Floor 1
Singing workshop
Join Ethno Vox for a workshop learning songs that will be sung during the Emancipation ceremony at the end of the day.
3pm - 4pm | Group Space, Floor 0
Emancipation ceremony
Participate in a procession from the National Maritime Museum to the River Thames to collectively remember all lives affected by transatlantic slavery.
Hear from Ethno Vox and listen to a closing speech given by Rasheeda Page-Muir. Rasheeda and poet Ella Otomewo will also recite a live poem created throughout the day to represent our time shared together.
4pm - 4.40pm | The World Reimagined Globes, North Lawns
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What is International Slavery Remembrance Day?
Between the 1400s and 1800s, 12-15 million men, women and children were forcibly transported from Africa to the Americas.
This day stands as a reminder of the bravery, courage, resilience and determination of enslaved African people who continuously fought for their freedom.
It is a time to remember that people fought and died to establish their own freedom and liberation from the tyranny of enslavement.
The day also raises the contemporary legacies of transatlantic slavery, which are manifested in the continued racism and prejudice against Black and Caribbean communities.
UNESCO selected the 23 August to mark the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition. 23 August was the day that self-liberated enslaved people on the island of Saint Domingue (today Haiti and the Dominican Republic) rose up against French colonial rule, and played a crucial role in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.
Resources and responses
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Art and intervention at the National Maritime Museum
LIQUID CARBON (2021) is a digitised collage of drawings of water and paintings printed on mirrored aluminium, created by artist Deanio X and commissioned by the National Maritime Museum. It is currently on display in the Museum's Atlantic Worlds gallery.
"The work explores the resilience and resourcefulness of the African diaspora in response to the colonising project of the British empire," explains the artist. "The composite artwork builds upon motifs of blood, culture and memory to evoke a chaotic scene of resistance in the Atlantic Ocean’s middle passage and contemplates how the ripples of history return to meet us in the future."
Seed of the Fruit is a poem written by Mark Thompson and commissioned by the National Maritime Museum.
In the piece, the Anglo-Jamaican spoken word artist explores both his and Britain's connection to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans.
World Views: the Transatlantic Slave Trade
Young Historians Project volunteer Kaitlene Koranteng discusses some of the objects in the Royal Museums Greenwich collection, and what they tell us about the histories surrounding the slave trade.
Sound and memory
Listen to a playlist inspired by International Slavery Remembrance Day.
In pictures
Look back on previous Slavery Remembrance commemorations hosted at the National Maritime Museum
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Procession from the National Maritime Museum to the River Thames
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Music during the emancipation ceremony
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Jahmila Heath performs at the National Maritime Museum during Slavery Remembrance Day
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People dancing outside the National Maritime Museum
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Author Stella Dadzie speaking at the National Maritime Museum
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The emancipation ceremony by the River Thames
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Young people at the National Maritime Museum
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Musical performance
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Procession to the River Thames
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Historian S.I. Martin speaking at the National Maritime Museum
What’s On
Find more events at the National Maritime Museum.
Choose your tickets
Entry to the National Maritime Museum is free, but you are welcome to book tickets online in advance. Click the links below and select 23 August using the booking calendar. See all tickets and prices
National Maritime Museum
- Guaranteed entry time
- Access to all free galleries and activities
- Special exhibitions free in 2024
| Free entry |
|---|
| Book online |
Member tickets
- Unlimited free entry
- Priority booking and exclusive events
- Access using your membership card
| Membership card number required |
|---|
Become a Member
- Unlimited entry all year
- Royal Observatory
- Cutty Sark
- Planetarium Shows
- Special exhibitions
| Direct Debit | One-off |
|---|---|
| Individual: £50 | Individual: £60 |
| Family: from £60 | Family: from £70 |