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Parliament and Slavery, 1660–c.1710

The discovery of the texts of several abortive bills that would enable the regulation of the status of slaves by Parliament at Westminster provides an opportunity for a preliminary exploration of a hitherto unknown discourse about slavery in late seventeenth-and early eighteenth-century England. The proposed legislation focused on the spiritual welfare of slaves and the associated need to eradicate the traditional belief that baptism conferred manumission. These documents suggest that slavery was recognised as legal in England as well as in the colonies but also indicate the existence of radical proposals to institute more humane treatment of slaves.