Editing Scipio Africanus (slave) (section)

==Grave==
[[File:Scipio Africanus grave Henbury Bristol England arp.jpg|thumb|A general view of the grave of Scipio]]
He is remembered because of the elaborate [[Grave (burial)|grave]], consisting of painted [[headstone]] and [[footstone]], in the churchyard of [[St Mary's Church, Henbury|St Mary's]] in [[Henbury, Bristol|Henbury]]. The grave is [[grade II* listed]].<ref>{{NHLE |num=1205137 |desc=Memorial to Scipio Africanus 10 metres north west of south porch of Church of St Mary |accessdate=24 September 2016 }}</ref> Both stones feature black [[cherub]]s and the footstone bears the [[epitaph]]:

{{poemquote|
I who was Born a ''PAGAN'' and a ''SLAVE''
Now Sweetly Sleep a ''CHRISTIAN'' in my Grave
What tho' my hue was dark my ''SAVIORS'' sight
Shall Change this darkness into radiant light
Such grace to me my Lord on earth has given
To recommend me to my Lord in heaven
Whose glorious [[Second Coming|second coming]] here I wait
With saints and Angels Him to celebrate}}

It is thought that 10,000 [[Black people|black]] slaves and servants were in [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Britain]] in the early 18th century, but this is one of the very few memorials to them. Despite the quality of the memorial, there is no record of his burial in the church registers.<ref>{{cite web | title=The 18th century: church records | work=Discovering Bristol | url=http://discoveringbristol.org.uk/slavery/after-slavery/bristol-in-black-and-white/african-caribbean-bristol/the-18th-century-church-records/ | access-date=1 August 2013}}</ref>

=== 2020 Vandalism ===

Sometime between 16 and 17 June 2020 the headstone was smashed in two, with a message left nearby in chalk suggesting that the vandalism was in retaliation for the pulling down of the [[statue of Edward Colston]] by Black Lives Matter protestors, as well as the proposed removal of the gravestone of music hall blackface artist [[G H Elliott]]:<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=Enslaved African man's headstone in Bristol vandalised |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-53089528 |work=BBC News|date=18 June 2020|access-date=18 June 2020}}</ref><ref name=post>{{cite web |last=Cameron |first=Amanda |title=Headstone of an enslaved African vandalised with message 'look at what you made me do' |url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/headstone-enslaved-african-vandalised-message-4238147 |work=Bristol Live |date=18 June 2020|access-date=18 June 2020}}</ref>

{{quote|Now look at what you made me do. Stop protesting. Leave Elliott’s grave alone. Put Colston’s statue back or things will really heat up.<ref name=post />}}

The memorial was restored and put back in place in 2021.<ref>{{cite news|title=Bristol vandalism: Enslaved African man's grave restored|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-58675980|website=BBC News|date=24 September 2021}}</ref>