A Meeting on Mincing Lane

“The book is a wonderful exploration of life in London in the 18th century and we learn about many of the extraordinary events of Barber’s life.”—Dorset Magazine

“Michael Bundock has surpassed himself with this lively biography of the great, foundational abolitionist Granville Sharp. I expected information and got far more heart, passion, insight and humanity than I bargained for. Gripping and challenging, I cannot recommend this book enough.”—Paterson Joseph, author of The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho

“At last! A serious appreciation of the remarkable Granville Sharp—devout, musical, a friend to the Black poor and a permanent thorn in the side of both the legal elite and the West Indian lobby. A fine portrait and a major contribution.”—James Walvin, author of A World Transformed: Slavery in the Americas and the Origins of Global Power

“Through mastery of the archive and genuine insight into Sharp’s personality and preoccupations, this will be the standard account of Granville Sharp’s political life for many years to come.”—Christopher Brown, author of Moral Capital: Foundations of British Abolitionism

“Before there was William Wilberforce, there was Granville Sharp, who spent nearly his entire adult life fighting against slavery. Using admirable research of original documents, Michael Bundock has now placed Sharp where he rightfully belongs: at the head of the table of those who fought tirelessly for the British abolitionist cause at home and abroad.”—Gretchen Gerzina, author of Black England: A Forgotten Georgian History

“In this fluently written and readable account, Michael Bundock has provided a scholarly chronological narrative of Granville Sharp’s many campaigns and publications against slavery and the slave trade. This biography is now the first port of call for historians and other readers wanting to understand the legal, political and humanitarian views of a prominent British abolitionist.”—Kenneth Morgan, author of Slavery and the British Empire: From Africa to America“Illustrates in vivid detail the ways in which Granville Sharp shaped antislavery debates and actions in Britain and across parts of its empire over four decades. Sharp’s extensive archive allows Bundock to capture the day-to-day commitments of one of Britain’s most energetic antislavery activists, highlighting the vast domestic and international antislavery networks that Sharp helped cultivate.”—Philip Misevich, co-author of Atlas of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

Michael Bundock is a barrister and historian with a particular interest in eighteenth-century social and legal history, and an honorary research fellow at University College London. He is the author of The Fortunes of Francis Barber: The True Story of the Enslaved Jamaican Who Became Samuel Johnson’s Heir.

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