A Bitter Draught: St Helena and the Abolition of Slavery

About Colin Fox

Colin Fox was born in Birmingham and now lives in Oxfordshire. He was employed as a research scientist for a major oil company for 30 years and travelled extensively to many parts of the world. A lifetimes interest in history and scuba diving resulted in five seasons work as a volunteer diver on the Mary Rose project where he met his wife Debby who was chief archaeological illustrator for the Trust. His interest in St Helena came through his maternal grandmother Annie (Dolly) Bennett who was great granddaughter of Captain James Bennett of the East India Company. She recounted stories about the island particularly one about a leaf from James mahogany dining table being used for Napoleons coffin. This sparked further research and led to the publication of his book The Bennett Letters. In 2011 he and his wife visited the island and greatly enjoyed exploring the island and meeting the people. Colin is an active member of the Society of Friends of St Helena and since 2011 has been editor of their journal Wirebird. In 2014 he transcribed and edited (with Edward Baldwin) a report written by two Commissioners of Inquiry who came to the island in 1834 prior to its transfer from the East India Company to the Crown. This was published under the title A Precarious Livelihood. This current book is the result of ten years research.