Call to remove ‘notorious’ Mansfield monument over links to slavery

Mansfield Council is planning a carnival celebrating the town’s Windrush generation in the shadow of the Bentinck Memorial next month.

However, there have been calls to remove the memorial as Lord George Bentinck “lived off the profits of slavery”.

Historian Richard Hallam, of Forest Town, said he was “dismayed” when he heard of the carnival plans “under the very steps of the notorious Bentinck Memorial”.

He said: “The problem is the memorial is to a man who was a slave owner and member of an anti-abolitionist family that delayed the end of slavery in Britain for decades, but who were unfortunately the leading local landowners back in the day.

“All his life, Bentinck lived off the profits of slavery and the family even had a slave ship engaged in the Africa to Caribbean slave trade in the 1790s.”

Mansfield Council said work is “already under way” to review heritage across the district as part of its “decolonisation and ethics programme” and it welcomed feedback.

Missing statue

The large gothic memorial, in the centre of Market Place, was designed by architect Thomas Chambers Hine and built in 1849 to commemorate former Conservative MP Lord Bentinck, who had died the previous year, aged 46.

Funded by public subscription, it had been originally due to house a statue of Lord Bentinck, whose family owned much of the land in and around Mansfield, but ran out of money and the statue was never made.

Petition

A petition was launched to protect the memorial three years ago, in the wake of a statue in Bristol to slave trader Edward Colston being toppled and pushed into Bristol harbour during the George Floyd protests related to the Black Lives Matter movement.

In response, Andy Abrahams, Mansfield mayor, said: “There are no plans to remove any statues at this time.”

More than 200 people signed the petition, which was set up by Mansfield resident Samantha Hartin.

She wrote: “Eradicating this part of our heritage commits a huge portion of our shameful to the annals of history books. This part of our history then becomes hidden, forgotten and eventually repeated.

“I understand the need to feel remorse and anger, but I don't think that metaphorically lynching the statues of known slavers is an answer to the issue. As with all major issues in any civilised society the answer ultimately lies in education.”

However, Mr Hallam said: “This memorial was erected in less enlightened times than today, but there are some in Mansfield that feel a sense of shame and dismay that such an edifice exists in our town centre.”

Carnival time

Mansfield Council's cultural services team is planning the Mansfield Carnival, featuring live music, activities, crafts, food, face-painting, walkabout entertainers and a carnival parade.

Announcing the event, planned for Saturday, June 17, a council spokeswoman said: “The inaugural event – celebrating Caribbean music, culture and our local links with the Windrush generation – will take place in and around Mansfield Market Place.”

It ties in with an ongoing exhibition at Mansfield Museum celebrating Mansfield’s Windrush generation, migration and black history.

However, Mr Hallam said: “Organising a ‘Windrush carnival’ around the very steps of this monument is inappropriate. People, many of whom may have family histories scarred by slavery, will be celebrating the carnival around the memorial to a slaver in blissful ignorance of his crimes.

“It is inappropriate that the council allows the carnival to go ahead in this location without making suitable arrangements, such as boarding up the memorial with a public explanation as to why.”

Peaceful new location

He called for a review of the memorial’s “continued presence” in Market Place.

Mr Hallam said: “I urge the council to have the statue removed and taken for display in a more appropriate part of the town. I would suggest in a quiet, peaceful spot, somewhere along the waterside pathways along the River Maun, with signate giving appropriate and balanced historical notes.

“Either that, or hand it over to the Bentinck family, so they have it themselves back at Welbeck.

“Removing the memorial would actually be a huge benefit to the streetscape of Mansfield. Market Place would become a completely open space and that would open up many possibilities for future community use, for the benefit of all of us.”

Review under way

A council spokeswoman said: “We welcome residents’ engagement on this issue. We are pleased to confirm there is already work under way to review the history and origins of heritage across the district as part of the council’s decolonisation and ethics programme, a project Mansfield Museum is leading on.

“Regarding the Bentinck Memorial, there are plans to replace the memorial’s plaque with one which more fully shares the story of the memorial. This will take some time, however. We are planning for the consultation of this work to conclude in the New Year, with plans for a new plaque to be shared for further consultation in 2024.

“The council continues to work with our communities and black ambassadors to look for appropriate ways to mark the Windrush story within the Mansfield Carnival on June 17.

“We would like to reassure residents that although parts of this process do take time, action is being taken and the council’s approach to decolonisation aims to be diligent and thorough.”

Learn from history

Coun Ben Bradley, Mansfield MP, said he “disagreed entirely” with Mr Hallam.

Coun Bradley, also Nottinghamshire Council leader and member for Mansfield North, said: “In my entire six years as an MP, he is the first person ever to raise this with me.

“My view is, as has always been throughout the various national discussions about the removal of statues and monuments,these are historical talking points that educate future generations.

“I abhor the premise and practice of slavery, but have never supported removing such things from our historical records.

“We should build our own statues based on our modern standards and virtues, but not seek to judge history by those standards and certainly not seek to erase it. To see these monuments and know their history is to learn, and to ensure the same mistakes are not repeated.

“Aside from the general matter of statues, the Bentinck name is plastered over all sorts of things around our area and to erase it would not be a simple task. I don’t believe the population would support us doing that, as among other things it also speaks to our heritage in terms of the old colliery etc.

“The memorial is a wel- known landmark and just one resident out of 100,000 has contacted me about it. I would not support it being taken down, in fact I would actively oppose it.”