George Edward Doney (~1758–1809) is believed to have been born in

Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

around 1758. He was transported to Virginia as a young boy and sold into slavery. He came to

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

in around 1765 as a servant for the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

Cassiobury House Cassiobury House was a country house in Cassiobury Park, Watford, England. It was the ancestral seat of the Earls of Essex. Originally a Tudor building, dating from 1546 for Sir Richard Morrison, it was substantially remodelled in the 17th and ...

, continuing to serve the family for 44 years. He achieved respect and status at Cassiobury House and was baptized at

St Mary's Church, Watford St Mary's Watford is a Church of England church in Watford, Hertfordshire, in England. It is an active church situated in the town centre on Watford High Street, approximately outside London. St Mary's is the parish church of Watford and is part ...

on 1 August 1774.

George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex George Capel-Coningsby, 5th Earl of Essex FSA (13 November 1757 – 23 April 1839) was an English aristocrat and politician, and styled Viscount Malden until 1799. His surname was Capell until 1781. Early life George Capell was the eldest so ...

and the Countess of Essex were among the list of subscribers to the autobiography of

Olaudah Equiano Olaudah Equiano (; c. 1745 – 31 March 1797), known for most of his life as Gustavus Vassa (), was a writer and abolitionist from, according to his memoir, the Eboe (Igbo) region of the Kingdom of Benin (today southern Nigeria). Enslaved as ...

, a formerly enslaved person who was influential in the

abolitionist movement Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

Depiction in art

An unfinished painting from c.1809, ''Harvest Home'', by

J. M. W. Turner Joseph Mallord William Turner (23 April 177519 December 1851), known in his time as William Turner, was an English Romantic painter, printmaker and watercolourist. He is known for his expressive colouring, imaginative landscapes and turbulen ...

on his second visit to Cassiobury, depicts a black servant at a

harvest Harvesting is the process of gathering a ripe crop from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper. On smaller farms with minimal mechanization, harvesting is the most labor-i ...

dinner in one of the barns at Cassiobury House. Black figures have featured in many Western paintings but were typically shown at the edge of the canvas as peripheral, subordinate characters; Turner's positioning of the servant in the main group of people is thought to indicate that this was a high-ranking servant in the Cassiobury household, and this is likely Doney himself.

Death and burial

Doney died a freeman in 1809, two years after the British abolition of the Atlantic slave trade. His burial at St Mary's Church occurred on 8 September 1809, and a handsome headstone with an original poetic epigraph was erected in the churchyard. The gravestone was given

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

status in 2008.

References

External links

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George Edward Doney's involvement with the abolition movement? {{DEFAULTSORT:Doney, George Edward Gambian emigrants to England People from Watford Black British former slaves 18th-century slaves Converts to Christianity 18th-century Gambian people Year of birth uncertain 1809 deaths 18th-century American slaves Burials in Hertfordshire