slave ships

Liverpool slave ship: master Luke Collingwood, owner William Gregson and George Case, Liverpool merchants. In September 1781 it sailed with 442 slaves from São Tomé. Collingwood mistook Jamaica for San Domingue. Once they had lost the way, water became short, and many slaves died or became ill. Collingwood called together his officers and said that if the slaves on board were to die naturally the loss would be that of the owners of the ship; but if on some pretext affecting the safety of the crew they were to be thrown alive into the sea it would be the loss of the underwriters. Therefore 133 slaves, most of whom were sick and not likely to live, were thrown into the sea.

When the ship returned home the insurers disputed the captain’s claim. The owners therefore brought a suit against the insurers, demanding to be paid £30 for each slave, and were backed in King’s Bench; the underwriters then petitioned the Court of the Exchequer. Lord Mansfield remarked that the jury had to decide whether the slaves were thrown overboard from necessity