A seven-year-old African girl who was presented to Queen Victoria as a 'gift' in 1850 went on to become one of the best-known African women in Victorian Britain.
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who → present → Britain
But behind her royal connections was a childhood marked by violence, separation from her family, and decisions made largely by others.
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childhood → mark → others
Now, 176 years later, a newly published biography examines the life of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, while her great-great-grandson, Bayo Randle, reflects on what her experiences meant for his family.
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experiences → publish → family
The biography, Becoming Sarah Forbes Bonetta: A Yoruba Woman in Queen Victoria’s Court, has been written by Professor Henry Lovejoy of the University of Colorado Boulder.
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biography → become → Colorado
It looks beyond Bonetta's association with the British royal family to examine the circumstances in which she was brought to England, the restrictions placed on her, and the life she eventually built.
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she → look → her
Randle, a 37-year-old British-Nigerian barrister living in London, discussed his ancestor's story in an interview with The Guardian.
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Randle → live → Guardian
During the interview, Randle questioned the idea that a person could be given away as a diplomatic present, while acknowledging that the event had changed the course of his family's history.
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event → question → history
“I don’t think a human being, who has agency, could be ‘gifted’ from one to another, but had she not been gifted to Queen Victoria, would I be here today?” he asked.
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he → think → Victoria
A royal upbringing that came with restrictions
For much of her life, Bonetta was known for her unusual position in British society.
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Bonetta → come → society
Queen Victoria paid for her education, maintained contact with her, and later approved her marriage.
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Victoria → pay → marriage
She also became godmother to Bonetta's eldest daughter.
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She → become → daughter
However, the new biography questions whether this privileged upbringing meant that Bonetta was free to make her own choices.
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Bonetta → question → choices
According to Lovejoy's research, British naval captain Frederick Forbes, who brought the girl to England, had requested that she become “the property of the crown”.
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she → accord → crown
The historian argues that Bonetta was “effectively indentured to Queen Victoria until age 19”.
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Bonetta → argue → age
This finding places her experience in a different light.
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finding → place → light
According to the research, although she received an education and enjoyed connections unavailable to many others, her position was shaped by a system that continued to restrict African people's freedom even after the abolition of slavery.
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that → accord → slavery
Lovejoy has also examined how more than 700,000 Africans freed from enslavement were subjected to arrangements requiring them to work for years to cover the supposed cost of their freedom and argues that Bonetta occupied a privileged position within this broader system.
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Bonetta → examine → system
According to the historian, her achievements were used to support British claims about the benefits of colonial rule in Africa.
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achievements → accord → Africa
How Bonetta became part of the royal household
Long before she met Queen Victoria, Bonetta was a child named Aina, born in 1843 in Oke-Odan, in present-day southwest Nigeria.
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Bonetta → become → Nigeria
In 1848, forces belonging to King Ghezo of Dahomey attacked her town.
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forces → belong → town
Her family was killed, and she was captured at approximately five years old.
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she → kill → ?
She remained at the king's court for the next two years.
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She → remain → years
Her circumstances changed when Frederick Forbes, a captain in the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron, travelled to Dahomey in 1850.
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Forbes → change → 1850
He had been sent to persuade King Ghezo to agree to measures against the slave trade.
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He → send → trade
The diplomatic mission did not achieve its intended result, but Forbes returned with the young girl.
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Forbes → achieve → girl
According to English Heritage, it remains unclear whether Ghezo offered her freely or Forbes negotiated for her release.
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Forbes → accord → release
Before taking her to Britain, Forbes arranged for her baptism and gave her the name Sarah Forbes Bonetta, using his surname and the name of his ship.
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Forbes → take → ship
She met Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle on November 9, 1850.
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She → meet → November
The queen subsequently arranged for her care and education.
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queen → arrange → care
Bonetta spent time with the Forbes family, attended a missionary school in Sierra Leone and later lived with families in England.
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Bonetta → spend → England
Her abilities in languages and music attracted attention, and she became a familiar name in British newspapers.
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she → attract → newspapers
Bonetta's marriage and the life she built in Africa
Despite her close association with the royal family, Bonetta did not spend most of her adult life in England.
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Bonetta → build → England
At 19, she married James Pinson Labulo Davies, a wealthy merchant and philanthropist from Sierra Leone.
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she → marry → Leone
Their wedding took place on August 14, 1862, with Queen Victoria's approval.
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wedding → take → approval
But Bonetta had expressed doubts about marrying Davies.
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Bonetta → express → Davies
In correspondence with Mrs Schoen, whose family had cared for her in England, she questioned whether financial independence was a sufficient reason to accept a marriage.
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independence → care → marriage
The couple subsequently moved to Africa, living in Sierra Leone and Lagos.
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couple → move → Leone
They had three children, including their eldest daughter, Victoria, born in 1863 and named after the queen.
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They → have → queen
Bonetta became known for her accomplishments as a linguist, musician, travel writer and educator. Her life in Lagos was an important part of her story, although it has often received less attention than her childhood connection to the British monarchy.
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it → know → monarchy
Her later years were affected by tuberculosis.
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years → affect → tuberculosis
…and 16 more, not listed.
The Aporia
