History in focus: Exploring Tewkesbury’s past

Students from the BA (Hons) History course a have partnered with Tewkesbury Voices: Retain and Explain to deliver a powerful new exhibition, now on display at Tewkesbury Museum throughout June.

The project investigates Tewkesbury’s historical links to the transatlantic slave trade, with students Morgan and Ella curating an exhibition that explores the stories of three families memorialised in Tewkesbury Abbey. Their work sheds light on the town’s connections to Caribbean slavery and encourages critical reflection on how these histories are remembered.

PhD student Sarah Crowe has also collaborated on this initiative, contributing alongside Morgan and Ella to a monument review that will soon be published, detailing Tewkesbury’s historical links to the transatlantic slave trade.

Tewkesbury Voices shared this message:

“We’ve been so impressed and thankful to partner with the University of Gloucestershire on this groundbreaking work. This is a new and vital area of research, and we are thrilled to have collaborated with such passionate students and staff. A huge thanks to Dr. Christian O’Connell and his students for their dedication and insight.”

The initiative forms part of the History department’s Cotswold Centre for History and Heritage and supports the wider Legacies of Slavery in Gloucester project.

Dr Christian O’Connell, Academic Course Leader in History, said:

“We’re proud that our students have been part of a project that brings underexplored histories to light and deepens our understanding of the local and global past.”

The exhibition is open to the public and will run at Tewkesbury Museum until the end of June.