Northamptonshire in a Global Context Mainstreaming Black History in the Curriculum Key Stages 2 and 3 Paul Bracey Angela Alloway Julia Curtis Dean Smart First Published: 2009 Published by: Northamptonshire Black History Association. © Northamptonshire Black History Association 2008 Northamptonshire Black History Association Doddridge Centre 109 St James Road Northampton NN5 5LD www.northants-black-history.org.uk Printed: Almac, Piddington, Northampton This pack has been written by: Paul Bracey, Senior Lecturer in History Education, University of Northampton Angie Alloway, Studfall Junior School, Corby, Northamptonshire Julia Curtis, Millbrook Junior School, Kettering, Northamptonshire Dean Smart, Lecturer in History Education, University of the West of England Acknowledgements Northamptonshire Black History Association (NBHA) kindly thanks all those involved with the Association and its work for making this resource possible. Every effort has been made to trace the owners of copyright material in this product, we would particularly like to thank the following: Oku Ekpenyon for giving permission to make use of her research on Ira Aldridge. The National Portrait Gallery for permission to use the following paintings: Ira Aldridge by Nicolas Barabas (reference NPG D7311), Aldridge as Aaron in Titus Andronicus by William Pain (reference NPG D17967). If you believe we have made an error in attributing copyright, please contact us and we will be pleased to make the necessary corrections. Northamptonshire in a Global Context Contents Northamptonshire in a Global Context Page No Introduction ........................................................................3 James Chapple and the Daring Deed .......................5 National Curriculum Subject Links and Objectives ..................6 Introduction ..............................................................................7 List of Support Material .............................................................8 Activity Notes ..........................................................................10 Resource 1: Terrible Times at Castle Cornet ..........................13 Resource 2: Details of the Disaster ..........................................14 Resource 3a: The Ballad of Castle Cornet ...............................15 Resource 3b: The Ballad of Castle Cornet ...............................16 Resource 4: The Hero of Castle Cornet ...................................17 Resource 5a: Remembering the Past .......................................18 Resource 5b: Designing the Blue Plaque .................................19 Resource 6: Ripping Yarns .......................................................20 Ira Aldridge: A Charmed life? ...................................21 Introduction ............................................................................22 List of Support Material ...........................................................22 National Curriculum Subject Links and Objectives ................24 Activity Notes ..........................................................................26 Resource 1: Black Entertainers who have come to Northamptonshire ...................................................................30 Resource 2: A picture of Ira Aldridge ......................................31 Resource 3: The Times (1825) The Coburg Theatre.10th October 18 ..............................................................................32 Resource 4: A picture of Ira Aldridge as Aaron in Titus Andonicus by William Pain .....................................................34 Resource 5: Northampton Theatre advertisement for Ira Aldridge ........................................................................35 Resource 6: An emotional timeline of Ira Aldridge’s life .........36 Resource 7: Ira Aldridge: Critics and Supporters ....................37 Resource 8: Ira Aldridge: Life History Cards ...........................38 Resource 9: Context cards ......................................................39 1 Northamptonshire in a Global Context Contents Piecing together the Salem family jigsaw .............40 General Information ................................................................41 List of Support Material ...........................................................42 National Curriculum Subject links and Objectives .................44 Activity Notes ..........................................................................46 Resource 1: Pictures of Godfrey Salem’s family ......................49 Resource 2: A family tree of Godfrey Salem’s family shortly after World War 2 ....................................................................50 Resource 3: Refl ective diary ....................................................51 Resource 4: Transcript extracts about Godfrey Salem’s family during the Second World War .................................................52 Resource 5: A Transcript of Godfrey Salem’s Interview ..........55 Teachers Panel .................................................................95 2 Northamptonshire in a Global Context Introduction Paul Bracey Senior Lecturer in History Education University of Northampton The ‘Shaping the Future Project’ seeks to ensure that pupils have a more inclusive map of the past that includes an appreciation of Black History within our locality as well as setting this in its wider national and global context. It follows research undertaken by John Siblon (2005)1 where teachers identifi ed the need for resources and teaching materials in order to promote this dimension in the curriculum. Each of the key packs has consciously used local experiences to explore wider issues. We hope that by focusing on major themes such as slavery to emancipation, oral testimonies of people from Black communities in Northamptonshire, representations of empire through museum objects, and the experiences of Walter Tull, who was clearly a signifi cant local and national fi gure, that the project provides a range of opportunities to promote diversity within the curriculum. However, selected topics by themselves run the risk of leaving Black History as a bolt-on feature of the curriculum rather than a natural part of children’s learning experiences. The Shaping the Future Project seeks to go some way towards addressing this issue by providing contextual support by the publication of a Black History book, entitled Sharing the Past: Northamptonshire Black History and three mini-teaching resource packs which can be integrated into wider studies and themes within your programme of study. Sharing the Past: Northamptonshire Black History, published in 2008, was written by local historians in the Northamptonshire Black History Association and provides valuable contextual knowledge and understanding for the teachers. The fl avour is demonstrated in this extract from the book’s introduction: Did you know that Northamptonshire was home to a Saracen crossbow-maker in the thirteenth century? Did you know that parish registers record the baptisms and deaths of named Black individuals, from the sixteenth century onwards? Have you ever come across a Black servant’s grave in a country churchyard? Does your knowledge of famous visitors to Northamptonshire include the stories of Susi and Chuma, guides to the African missionary David Livingstone, and of Dadabhai Naoroji, the fi rst Black British Member of Parliament? Supported by the famous “Member for India”, Charles Bradlaugh, Naoroji denounced the suff ering infl icted by imperial rule at Northampton Guildhall in 1888. With hindsight, we can 1 Siblon, J. (2005) Black is also interpret this event as a warning of the future dismantling of the British: An investigation into the needs and opportunities British Empire. It is very unlikely that the appreciative local audience for developing Black History either expected or wished for such an outcome. Northamptonshire within the schools curriculum people played a brave role in various imperialist wars during the in Northamptonshire: A following decades, before fi nally accepting the inevitable. Report commissioned by Northamptonshire Black History NHBA (2008) Sharing the Past: Northamptonshire Black History. Project and University College Northampton. Northampton: Northampton: Northamptonshire Black History Association. Northamptonshire Black History Project and University College Northampton. 3 Northamptonshire in a Global Context This teaching resource explores three different topics covered within Sharing the Past. These mini-teaching packs are intended to provide materials for one or two lessons either as a lead into or as part of a wider general topic. The packs relate to different periods in the past in order to promote the integration of a black dimension in both the recent and distant past as part of out multicultural society and wider world. The three packs include suggested activities and ways in which the exercise can be mainstreamed. We hope that you will build on this, to use other local black history resources in other areas of your programme of study. 1 James Chapple and the Daring Deed. Produced by Dean Smart, Lecturer in Education, University of West of England. James Chapple was a servant of Sir Christopher Hatton of Kirby Hall. James rescued Sir Hatton at an explosion at Castle Cornet in Guernsey in 1672. 2 Ira Aldridge: A Charmed Life? Produced by Paul Bracey, Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Northampton. Ira Aldridge was a famous Shakespearean actor in the 19th century. 3 Piecing together the Salem family jigsaw.