Plaque highlighting man's role in slave trade placed beneath controversial memorial in Falmouth

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Activists have mounted a plaque beneath a memorial to an 18th century slave trader in Cornwall, highlighting his role in the trade of enslaved people.

The group installed the brass plaque just below the commemorative stone memorial, which sits on the wall inside King Charles the Martyr's Church, on Falmouth High Street.

The anonymous activists said the plaque was both an act of protest and also a way to give churchgoers and visitors "context".

The plaque reads: "Thomas Corker was England's Chief Agent for the Royal African Company on York Island.

"He oversaw and profited from the kidnap, enslavement and sale of slaves. The Royal African Company shipped more enslaved men, women and children to the Americas than any other trading company in the world."

Responding to the plaque, a spokesperson for the church said: "We don't feel this is helpful at all and detracts from the very good and inclusive work we are doing".

They added it has caused "unnecessary distress".

Thomas Corker was born in Falmouth but moved to the Guinea coast in Africa aged 14. He became a chief agent for a slave trading company and married an African princess.

He was transferred by the Royal African Company to The Gambia in April 1699 and died on a business trip to Falmouth in 1700.

The existing memorial has been inside the Grade II* listed church for many years, but a consultation was held on its future in 2023, with some residents calling for it to be removed.

Following the consultation, the Parochial Church Council (PCC) said the memorial to Thomas Corker would not be removed.

The memorial was stated to be of real importance in understanding the history of Falmouth, and Rev Canon Bill Stuart-White said that it was the role of the church to promote racial conciliation.

A spokesperson for the Diocese of Truro said it is "working closely" with the community to find a solution.

In a statement, they said: "The Diocese of Truro, King Charles Parochial Church Council, the church community, people in Falmouth including the black community, Black Voices Cornwall, the Church of England’s Contested Heritage Committee, Clinton Sealy, operations director for Transformation Cornwall, who was one of the original campaigners, and other interested parties have been working closely together to find the best solution, including an honest description of the history of Thomas Corker’s involvement in slavery."We also hope to tell the story of Joseph Emidy, a black musician and composer, who was a freed slave who settled in Cornwall and already has a smaller memorial in the church, and to describe and challenge the evils of modern slavery.

"This has not been a quick process but there has been a lot of energy and resources given to it and we want to thank all those who are working with us through the proper channels to achieve a positive and enriching outcome."

But the findings of the consultation disappointed the local campaign group Remove Slave Trader Memorial in Falmouth UK.

Activists: 'It appears the church would rather bury its head in the sand and dodge accountability'

Writing about the new plaque, the group of anonymous activists said: "This is to give context to the memorial, which fails to acknowledge any of this history, and instead glorifies his life."The context of the plaque has been well researched to ensure historical accuracy, with the intention of giving a fuller insight for visitors to the history surrounding it.

"Although done as an act of protest, its intention is as a donation to the church, to give them the opportunity to acknowledge harms and inform the public, in the assumption that this is what they would wish to do."For years, people have campaigned for either the removal of the memorial or written recognition of Corker's key role he played in the slave trade, yet the church has not acted on either such call."

One of the campaigners added: "It appears that the church feels no duty to understand the role that they are playing in upholding white supremacy, and would rather bury their heads in the sand and dodge any accountability of the pain that the memorial causes. To do so is an act of denial of the central role the Church of England, and Falmouth, played in the slave trade."They added: "The Church must play a key role due to its intertwined historic relationship with the slave trade. Through its £9 billion endowment fund being significantly financed by transatlantic chattel slavery, and the Archbishop's ancestral links to slavers. They are intrinsically implicated and, therefore must now do the work."The installation of this plaque is to recognise that this violation of humanity is still relevant and ongoing today to the people whose families have been directly impacted. Without doing the work to ensure full historical transparency, we are complicit in the eradication of a people's history."

The Rt Revd Hugh Nelson, acting Bishop of Truro, said they are still working with the community to decide how to present the memorial.He said: "The slave trade was a great evil which continues to cause harm to millions of people today. The presence of a memorial to a man who benefited from trading human beings in a building that points to the God of justice and freedom is deeply troubling. I have been encouraged by the careful work and close partnerships that have been built up as solutions are found."Part of the discussion around what is displayed in relation to this memorial includes a trigger warning because of the sensitive nature of the topic and we have a duty of care to all visitors. Our consultations have made clear that there are a range of views across Falmouth, and we have been listening and working with all perspectives."

He added that most of those involved in working out a solution are volunteers and that regular updates have not been given as they have been waiting to have "tangible news to share" - but he recognises this may mean some people believed the "process had stopped".

King Charles Church: 'We don't feel this is helpful and it detracts from the work we are doing'Pip Horton, lay vice chair and PCC secretary at King Charles Church and a member of the sub-committee tasked with the Thomas Corker work, added: “We understand that a lone individual, who purports to be ‘the people of Falmouth’ has taken it upon themselves to enter the church and erect a plaque without our knowledge or the proper permissions.

"Quite frankly, we don’t feel this is helpful at all and detracts from the very good and inclusive work we are doing in partnership with others including Black Voices Cornwall."We understand that some people may have concerns about what they see as a delay, but this is not helpful to our efforts and has caused unnecessary distress."

The diocese also added that as the church is protected by law due to its Grade II* listed status, they are now investigating what action might need to be taken.