Black History: Every Month: The Extraordinary Life of Charles Ignatius Sancho, with Paterson Joseph @ British Library Online

Ignatius Sancho. Patterson Jospeh. British Library. Live — in-person and online. Vibrant 18th-century London.

Strangely I am feeling patriotic — I am feeling so proud to stand alongside voting citizen, Londoner, Affrican and Englishman Ignatius Sancho. Although society and culture tried to do the opposite, similarly that Christianity (certainly baptism and evidence of expressed faith) and being in England could lead to thoughts of freedom, life and citizenship.

Paterson Joseph, for a bargain £5 read something of his book on Ignatius Sancho. Having been privileged to see his monologue about the life of Sancho, I have great expectations for this book — of the stories and images that will live, Dickens like, in my head afterwards. Horribly enslaved as a child and used as a fashion accessory by a rich family, Ignatius Sancho escaped this to become a Londoner, Englishman, grocer within two streets of Downing Street, a voter (because he owned property), a family man who deeply loved his wife all his life, a father (atleast 7 children — probably 9 now as the archives keep giving up their secrets); a musician — composer and dancer; a man of letters, a seeker of art, an actor, a lover of words.

Seeking art, education, literacy, family and love, Sancho writes dance tunes (country dances), the pop music of the day and joins the Sons of Africa to fight against enslavement and to empower his people. Paterson Joseph describes a lively London — one of solidarity between people of colour, Irish people (vilified as Catholic King killers); travellers and displaced peoples — all living, being Londonders and whose descendents are probably still about today, unrecognised and unknown. Not so much carpe dieum as carpe archium — seize the archives! Get researching….(After 20 years, 2 more children of Ignatius Sancho have come to light — what are their stories?)

Whilst the interview could have been a bit deeper and probed a bit more, Paterson Joseph read and spoke so eruditely and expressively — can’t wait to read the work. Wish he wasn’t so cynical about Sancho’s lifelong deep love for his wife (atleast in his letters) — why not, maybe he just very much appreciated who and what he had?

Previous events can be watched, free, here — https://www.bl.uk/british-library-player

What a treasure trove!