The process has been complicated, which led to this accidental oversight., Get UK politics insight with our free daily email briefing straight to your inbox. He was privately educated at Harrow School . A fraction of his family fortune, accumulated during centuries of slavery, could do good today for people . In the Chinese capital, there is even a Barbados development office, these days. Richard Draxs 17th-century ancestors James and William sailed toBarbadosin the late 1620s, where they cleared lush land in the centre of the island and experimented with growing and processing sugar. Lets say that things didnt go too well from there, the insider says. Charborough House, Dorset, Wessex, England, Olantigh, Wye, Kent, South-east England, England, http://www.dorsetlife.co.uk/2011/01/three-cheers-for-sawbridge-drax/, http://lh.matthewbeckett.com/houses/lh_kent_olantightowers.html, Occupations of enslaved women on Buff Bay Plantation, 1819, http://wwwdepts-live.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/2246. Later, the Draxes married into the Erle family that owned Charborough Park and the sugar profits helped to greatly extend the . On 5 February 2013, Drax voted in the House of Commons against a Second Reading of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 that legalised marriage for same-sex couples. Occupations of enslaved women on Buff Bay Plantation, 1819, http://wwwdepts-live.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/2146643067. Come on, Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax, pay up, pay up and redeem your name!Duncan TomsMachynlleth, Powys. By 1680, he had 327 black chattels and just seven whites. Powells was a constructive and humane challenge to the entrenched attitudes of psychiatric and nursing professionals. Here is a key to explain those letter codes: Prominent Liverpool merchant and slave-trader. [1] But then, as I have learnt while investigating this story very much of-the-moment, in a week when the British royals are mired in another race furore it is a saga rife with dubious reasoning and double standards. Drax is only the first target, he told me, evidently fired up for this great new crusade. It only began to end after 1833, when slavery was abolished in the British Empire. This was a crime against humanity and we impose upon him [Mr Drax] and his family a moral responsibility to contribute to the effort to repair the damage.. Drax also owns some 125 Dorset properties personally or through family trusts and could be worth as much as 150m. Last week, leading figures in the Caribbean Communitys (Caricom) Reparations Commission described the Drax Hall plantation as a killing field and a crime scene from the tens of thousands of African slaves who died there in terrible conditions between 1640 and 1836. Tax Justice Network chief Alex Cobham said of Mr Draxs new records: Its difficult to see how this error could have been made in a way that was neither knowing nor reckless.. [28], At least six of his ancestors, including John Samuel Wanley Sawbridge Erle-Drax and the 17th Lord Dunsany, were Members of Parliament for Dorset and Gloucestershire between the 1680s and 1880s. The Drax family also owned slave plantations in Jamaica, which they sold in the mid-1800s. When, periodically, the Africans rebelled, the reprisals were shockingly swift and savage. The move means voters have been denied details about his business interests, and under S106 of the Companies Act it is an offence to knowingly or recklessly make misleading statements. Selected as a Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate in July 2006, at the general election in May 2010 Drax defeated the incumbent Labour Member of Parliament for South Dorset, Jim Knight, later Baron Knight of Weymouth. [16] Drax praised May's successor, Boris Johnson, for achieving a trade deal in December 2020,[17] but in February 2021 expressed concern over the Northern Ireland Protocol and disruption to trade in Northern Ireland. His brother William took their methods to Jamaica where the former plantation area is also still known as Drax Hall. Clearly there are some glaring contradictions to all this. Drax denied the accusations, saying that he used the shortened version of his name only because of the "logistic mouthful", while Cameron's comments were a "throw away joke". But it is Richard Drax MPs inheritance in Barbados, amassed over centuries by his ancestors ownership and appalling treatment of African people which drags him into the spotlight. About 20m a huge sum was then paid out to compensate slave owners. The answer is that civil servants and ministers had no education to prepare them for the world of negotiating and managing commercial contracts. James Tappers insightful contribution (New Generation of Good Lifers who set out to grow their own Christmas, News) includes a tip for self-sufficiency from the renowned expert William Sutherland, who advises the novice grower against planting carrots. Its like making my great-great-great-grandchildren pay for my wrongdoings not that slavery was considered to be wrong back then. Sir Hilary Beckles, a prominent Barbadian historian of slavery, said Drax must acknowledge the wealth brought to the family by slavery. They have a responsibility now to make some effort to help repair the damage. But the shadow of slavery hangs over the gilded life of Richard Drax, Wealthy MP urged to pay up for his familys slave trade past. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. The comments below have been moderated in advance. After being flogged relentlessly for days, his ears were cut off and roasted, and he was forced to eat them. Richard Drax MP's 150m personal fortune was extracted on his ancestors' network of Caribbean plantations, where 30,000 slaves lost their lives. (LogOut/ They were beaters hired for a game-shoot he hosted. Richard enjoyed a variety of activities, ranging from ceremonial duties, such as Trooping . Beckles says Richard Drax should: One: apologise to African people and the people of the Caribbean. Mr Thomas believes Britain and other European countries that profited from slavery, such as Spain, France, Portugal and Holland (who for many years dominated the trade), should compensate the Caribbean islands they plundered, but at a governmental level. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. Moreover, how far back do the woke brigade expect the reckoning to go? The Barbadian revolutionary David Denny thinks otherwise. Such was Sir Jamess wealth that in 1650 he built the plantation house Drax Hall that still stands today and in which he lived, according to an eyewitness, like a prince. "Black life mattered only to make millionaires of English enslavers. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. The strongest-looking men could fetch 20 3,500 in todays money; lusting plantation officers would also buy young girls for their harems. You drive in and it looks like a plantation might look back in the 17th century. Daily Mirror, 5 May 2010; Dorset Echo, 6 May 2010. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. The Buff Bay plantation was a sugar estate next to the Buff Bay River, south of Charlestown in Jamaica. Which MP is backing whom the updated list. In Barbados, production is now subsidised by the government, and heavy rainfall reduced last years yield at Drax Hall to just 7,000 tonnes of raw cane (producing 700 tonnes of sugar). His wife is Elsebet Drax (m. 1998), Zara Drax (m. 19851997). Six were burnt alive, and 11 beheaded. Richardpassed away in 1370, at age 33 at death place. Catherine Bennett was right to question the special Eton magic (Just what is the special Eton magic that allows it to turn out epic oafs year after year?, Comment). It was suggested the then leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron, had asked wealthy Conservative candidates to shorten their names to appear more in touch with normal people. The Foreign Secretary's lead amongst MPs grows", "The ten landowners who own one-sixth of Dorset", "Obituary of Henry Walter Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax", "MP Richard Drax, his wife, the lesbian housekeeper and the threesome that never was", "Barbados plans to make Tory MP pay reparations for family's slave past", "Benedict Cumberbatch's ancestors got rich from slavery in Barbados. We are a people company first and a tax company second. On the marriage, Sawbridge assumed the name of Erle-Drax. But the shadow of slavery hangs over the gilded life of Richard Drax, adding that The hardline Tory Brexiters family made a fortune from their Caribbean plantations where thousands died. Now, Drax faces urgent calls for reparations. Within three weeks, his ministerial circular envisaged a variety of services for mentally ill people. Britain outlawed slave trading in 1807, and ownership of slaves was banned in 1833. But for all his wealth and power, there is a dark shadow hanging over Richard Drax his familys historical links with slavery in the plantations of the West Indies, which are now prompting mounting calls from former Caribbean colonies for reparations. . Richard Drax is facing calls for an investigation, Mr Drax worth about 150million could also face a parliamentary probe. 1462): the second oldest title in the Peerage of Ireland. A cousin is the 19th and present Lord Dunsany. [14], Drax campaigned for Brexit during the 2016 referendum. It raises many ethical and philosophical questions. By 1839, the estate was 840 acres. Its conical tower once held a huge bell that tolled at dawn each morning, summoning the slaves to their 12 hours of back-breaking toil. If Richard Drax was in front of me now, I would say: Mr Drax, the people of Barbados and Jamaica are entitled to reparatory justice., Beckles, the chair of the Caricom Reparations Commission and vice-chancellor of the University of the West Indies, said: Today, when I drive through the Drax Hall land and its environs, I feel a keen sense of being in a massive killing field with unmarked cemeteries. The MPs spokesman said: Richard was made aware on February 5 of omissions in the Companies House filings in relation to unlimited Abbots Court Farm and Anderson Manor Farm. Mr Whitehead pointed to a clearing, shaded by tamarind and sandbox trees, where the slaves slept in wooden huts. Christianwas born circa 1341, in Yorkshire, England. Should individual Danes be forced to compensate the United Kingdom for the rape and pillage of Viking invasions? Like many of his ancestors, Drax is a Dorset MP and is probably the wealthiest landowner in the House of Commons, with 5,600 hectares of farmland and woodlands. ), became owner of Drax Hall. So, how much is Richard Drax worth at the age of 64 years old? Pamela Weeks (19312019) and a grandson of Admiral The Hon. Drax has not yet declared the land or its properties in the parliamentary register of members interests. Later, the Draxes married into the Erle family that owned Charborough Park and the sugar profits helped to greatly extend the mansion and lands back in England. According to Parliament's register of interests, Drax was one of 72 Conservative MPs who voted against the amendment who personally derived an income from renting out property. We have estimated Over 200 years, 30,000 slaves died at this and the other Drax plantations, according to Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Chair of CARICOM's Reparations Commission. Richard Drax cannot be responsible for what his ancestors did 400 years ago. For the Drax family see entries for Richard Erle Drax Grosvenor and John Samuel Wanley Sawbridge Erle-Drax (q.v. The Drax family did it longer than any elite family.. Sir Hilary Beckles, chair of the Caribbean Community Reparations Commission and vice-chancellor of the University of the West Indies, said: People of Barbados and Jamaica are entitled to reparatory justice. They are demanding that South Dorset MP Richard Drax, who now owns the estate, must pay a vast sum to compensate for the historic sins of his forebears. Drax married his second wife; Eliza, daughter of Commander James Dugdale RN (related to David Cameron). Two: show remorse and participate in reparatory justice. Voting to increase curbs in 2013, he said:I believe, as do many of my constituents, that this country is full.. Once that process is completed, I will of course register it in proper accordance with the rules. Since then, we've grown to have approximately 12,000 offices throughout the United States and around the world. We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 29 January. Drax married his second wife; Eliza, daughter of Commander James Dugdale RN (related to David Cameron) in 1998. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. To restate its commitment to recruit 50,000 nurses by the end of the current parliament not only fails to respond to the immediate shortages but also takes no account of the fact that the target was set before the onset of the pandemic. Just what is the special Eton magic that allows it to turn out epic oafs year after year? The MP declined to comment this week. Genealogy profile for Richard Erle-Drax-Grosvenor, MP. One of only three Jacobean mansions in the Americas, the official Barbados tourism website lists it as one of the islands seven wonders. We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous Politician. He was promoted captain on 10 March 1986. Mr Drax, a rich, high-profile British MP, had been picked on precisely because was an easy target. If he espouses the same cause that so many Tories champion, that it does people good to learn to stand on their own two feet, he would surely welcome the introduction of wealth and land taxes.Brian WoollandSalisbury, Wiltshire, Richard Drax cannot be responsible for what his ancestors did 400 years ago. The Prestigious school where Princes William and Harry were educated is EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Prince William's potentially awkward visit to homelessness charity. The plantation relied on slaves for almost 200 years and the MP said his ancestors involvement was regrettable. Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (born 29 January 1958) is a British Conservative politician, journalist and landowner, serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset since 2010 . Reputedly the richest landowner in the Commons, his portfolio of companies includes farms that grow poppies to make opium for the NHS and hops for craft breweries. Sir Reginald Drax, younger son of the 17th Lord Dunsany thereby being in remainder to the ancient Barony of Dunsany (cr. Yet are we to suppose that China, with its ruthless suppression of the Uighurs and Covid lockdown protesters, is morally superior to the unenlightened slavers of Stuart and Georgian England? A Tory MP has finally admitted to Parliament he owns a former slave plantation where his family made millions. The latest examples of this can be seen in the confusing and expensive mess of managing Covid-19. Others countered that, while the deeds of the Drax dynasty could never be condoned, they had already done much to benefit the community. His brother, Thomas Grosvenor (1764-1851); of Grosvenor House, Walthamstow, Essex and Stocking Hall, Leics. 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