HMS Black Joke

HMS Black Joke

Please note that this episode contains mentions of racial trauma, slavery and violence.


The most feared ship in Britain’s West Africa Squadron, His Majesty’s Black Joke was one of a handful of ships tasked with patrolling the western coast of Africa in an effort to end hundreds of years of global slave trading. Once a slaving vessel itself, only a lucky capture in 1827 allowed it to be repurposed by the Royal Navy to catch its former compatriots.


A.E. Rooks is an expert in this little-discussed facet of the transatlantic slave trade. Rooks joins Dan on the podcast to chronicle this history of the daring feats of a single ship - whose crew and commanders would capture more ships and liberate more enslaved people than any other in the Squadron.


Produced by Hannah Ward

Mixed and Mastered by Dougal Patmore


If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(1492)

The First Indigenous Americans in Europe

The First Indigenous Americans in Europe

1492 marked the beginning of the Colombian Exchange - the transfer of people, goods, ideas and commodities across the Atlantic between Europe and the Americas. We hear a lot about the conquistadors, t...

23 Jan 202324min

WWI Lifesavers and Body Snatchers

WWI Lifesavers and Body Snatchers

The brutal nature of the First World War presented frontline medical personnel with an array of horrific and debilitating wounds, inflicted on a previously unimaginable scale. From gas attacks and bay...

20 Jan 202325min

Zheng He: The Ming Dynasty Explorer

Zheng He: The Ming Dynasty Explorer

The Ming Dynasty emerged in the second half of the 14th century, having achieved a hard-won victory over the declining Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. Admiral Zheng He, a Muslim of Mongol descent, was born i...

19 Jan 202328min

North America's French Indian War

North America's French Indian War

As the British and French colonies in North America expanded in the middle of the 18th century, they inevitably clashed. Fighting between the two sides and their respective Native American allies bega...

18 Jan 202323min

Hitler and Mussolini

Hitler and Mussolini

Just over 100 years ago, in October 1922, Mussolini and 30,000 Blackshirts marched on Rome. It was a mass demonstration that would see his National Fascist Party take power in the Kingdom of Italy. Ho...

17 Jan 202329min

Churchill's Surprising Career in Scotland

Churchill's Surprising Career in Scotland

Winston Churchill is possibly the most famous politician in British history. Throughout his career, he would hold numerous positions in government, including serving as the MP for 5 different constitu...

16 Jan 202320min

The Mongol Empire

The Mongol Empire

The Crusades are well-known but only part of the complex history of the medieval Near East. During the same era, the region was completely remade by the Mongol invasions. In a single generation, the ...

13 Jan 202334min

The Himalayas

The Himalayas

The Himalayas is one of the most expansive and storied regions in the world. It's also a place that we're hugely dependent on, providing billions of people with fresh water. Because of its significanc...

12 Jan 202323min

Populært innen Historie

rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
rss-katastrofe
henrettelsespodden
historier-som-endret-norge
rss-historiske-romanser
rss-benadet
historier-som-endret-verden
sektledere
med-egne-oyne
aftenposten-historie
rss-frontkjemperne
rss-gamle-greier
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
rss-nadelose-nordmenn-gestapo
historiepodden
historiepodden-ww2
liberal-halvtime
vare-historier
gangsterpodden-2
rss-historiepodden-ww2