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The Breath of England

from Stolen From God by Reg Meuross

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about

In 1772 Lord Mansfield officiated in the trial of James Somersett, a case which would finally define legally and morally the wrongful aspects of the capture, trading and ownership of slaves. Mansfield himself had an adopted daughter of mixed heritage called Belle.

Two years earlier Charles Stewart, a Scottish Customs Officer and Merchant bought James Somersett in America and took him to London to be his servant. Stewart had James baptised in the presence of three English Godparents, but possibly because baptism was equated with manumission, once baptised, Somersett refused to serve Stewart and he escaped.
He was recaptured and forced on to a ship to be transported and resume life as a slave in Jamaica. His godparents however brought the case to the attention of Granville Sharp, one of the country’s leading abolitionists. Sharp took the case to Lord Mansfield who ruled that laws in the colonies did not apply to England where no legislation had ever been passed to legalise slavery. By English law you could own a man abroad but to own a man in England was
a crime.

William “Bull” Davy, a Lawyer from Exeter was employed as an advocate for Somersett, and he argued that the air of England is so pure that it cannot be breathed by a slave, therefore once an enslaved person sets foot on English soil they become free. Mansfield found in favour of Somersett and he was released. The case didn’t end slavery but it added potent fuel to the abolition movement.

In the 1780’s Anti Slavery International, the first civil rights organisation, was formed, and new regulations were introduced to improve conditions and restrict numbers allowed on slave ships. And Bridgwater in Somerset presented the first petition to Parliament for abolition.

lyrics

The Breath of England
Stewart took me out of Boston in 1769
Brought me here to England to work on the factory line
The food I ate was dirty and I never got no pay
I worked til I was sick and then one night I stole away
Stewart took me out of Boston in 1769

I had no work nor money no place to settle down
And soon enough they locked me in a ship Jamaica bound
But with the mark of God upon me from when I was baptised
Three advocates spoke for me my rights to exercise
Cos I had no work no money and no place to settle down

Swing Low Boys Let it go boys - Swing Low Boys Let it go

Bull Davy was a Devon man and he stepped up to the plate
You may be a slave in America or in Barbados meet that fate
But to chain a man in England for the colour of his skin
Is to sin against mankind and cast all England in that sin
Bull Davy was a Devon man and he stepped up to the plate

To breathe the air of England at first you must be free
For no kind of law for rich or poor has sanctioned slavery
But the slaves are 15,000 and to free them makes no sense
But the judge said just let justice be whatever the consequence
To breathe the air of England at first you must be free

The breath of England’s pure the breath of England’s sweet
Look to some foreign shore Jerusalem’s defeat

My name it is James Somerset and I am a free man
Though taken from my family and taken from my land
Taken from the ones I loved where love was shown to me
To live just like an animal like stolen property
My name it is James Somerset and I am a free man

credits

from Stolen From God, released April 7, 2023
Reg: Vocal / Guitar
Jali Fily Cissokho : Kora
Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne: Concertina
Roy Dodds: Percussion
Tom Jobling: Bass / Percussion
John Hare: Flugel
Reg / Cohen / Jaz Gayle / Katie Whitehouse: BVox

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Reg Meuross England, UK

The breadth and depth of Reg Meuross’s material is unparalleled in contemporary folk: songs about forgotten heroes, famous names, folk legends, the climate emergency, tales from the kitchen sink and news from the world stage; if something needs to be sung about then Reg Meuross has a song for it. ... more

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