The South Sea Company was a state funded slave trading company into which the main politicians of the day invested including the first Prime Minister of the UK. Robert Walpole was a slaver. He negotiated a means to continue his power within parliament and the government to make sure he could keep his lifestyle going. He needed politics to stay financially viable. Robert Walpole was a slaver!

The South Sea Company financial bubble eventually burst and when it did a lot of the country’s elite, not to mention a number of European investors too, all suffered huge financial losses. Upon its dissolution, its assets were divided between two entities: The Bank of England and the East India Company.

These are but some of the legacies of the period that remain under-represented in modern political debate. We talk about the greats of the past, e ...