Mary Prince Day in Bermuda 2023: Date, History, Facts about Mary Prince

Mary Prince Day is observed in Bermuda on the Friday preceding the first Monday of August, which coincides with the second day of Cup Match, a public holiday and annual cricket match between Somerset and St. George’s. This year, the date of the holiday is August 4. The second day of the Cup Match holiday was formerly named after Admiral Sir George Somers, whose shipwreck on July 28, 1609, led to the establishment of the English colony of Bermuda.

Since 2018, there has been a movement to rename Somers Day to Mary Prince Day, so that Emancipation Day is followed by a celebration honouring a Bermudian who made a significant contribution to the slave abolition movement.

The background of Mary Prince Day

Mary Prince was born into servitude on October 1, 1788, in Devonshire Parish. When her mother’s master passed away that year, Prince, her mother, and her siblings were sold to Captain Darrell as domestic servants. Since the age of 12, she had been acquired thrice. Prince was returned to Bermuda in 1810, where her master and his daughter had relocated. She was physically abused by her master while she was here, but Prince stood up to him twice: once to defend his daughter, whom he also beat, and once when he struck her for dropping cooking implements. After that, she was hired out to Cedar Hill, where she earned money for her owner by washing his clothing.

Prince was sold for the fourth time to John Adams Wood of Antigua in 1815. During Wood’s travels, Prince supported herself by doing laundry and selling coffee, yams, and other provisions to ships. She was baptised and accepted for communion in the English church in 1817, but she was afraid to ask Wood for permission to attend. In December 1826, Prince married Daniel James, a former slave who had purchased his freedom through savings. He was a cooper and a woodworker.

Wood and his family moved to London in 1828, bringing Prince with them as a servant. At that time, it was illegal to transport enslaved individuals out of England, but this did not render slavery illegal in England, despite popular belief. Here, Prince and Wood experienced increasing conflict. They ultimately provided her with a letter that nominally granted her the right to resign, but suggested that no one employ her.

After abandoning his family, Prince sought refuge in the Moravian church in Hatton Garden. Within a few weeks, she began working part-time for Thomas Pringle, a writer and Secretary of the Anti-Slavery Society, which aided indigent black people. Prince was employed by the Forsyths, but they departed England in 1829. In 1829, the Woods returned to Antigua with their daughter after leaving England. Pringle attempted to have Wood manumit Prince so that she could attain legal autonomy. As long as slavery was lawful in Antigua, Prince could not return to her husband and friends without being re-enslaved and submitting to Wood’s rule.

The Anti-Slavery Society contemplated petitioning Parliament to grant the Prince’s manumission after failing to reach an agreement. Pringle encouraged Prince to have Susana Strickland transcribe her life narrative, to which he complied. The book, titled “The History of Mary Prince,” was published in 1831 under the editorship of Pringle. At a time when the anti-slavery movement was gaining momentum, her firsthand account had a significant impact on a large number of people. In 1833, she testified in two libel cases. In August of 1834, the Slavery Abolition Act went into effect after being passed that year. Bermuda, which was not dependent on slavery, experienced emancipation shortly after the 1834 passage of the law.

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5 essential facts about Mary Prince

She remained in England until at least 1833, but it is unknown whether she was released or when she died.

She joined the Moravian church while attending courses in Antigua.

This is due to the fact that the Adams family did not wish for an emancipated black man to reside on their property.

It became official in Bermuda only in 2020.

This occurred on October 1, 2018, to commemorate her 230th birthday, and it is significant because it occurred before Mary Prince Day became an official holiday.

MARY PRINCE DAY DATES