A murderous insurance scam that exposed slavery’s horrors

Professor Hannah Greig and Ellie Cawthorne examine the story of the Zong massacre, in which more than 130 enslaved people were murdered – and their deaths claimed on insurance 

In the 1780s, an extraordinary insurance claim made its way through Britain’s courts – against the lives of more than 130 enslaved people who had been intentionally thrown overboard a slaving ship in the Caribbean. In this episode of History’s Greatest Scandals, Professor Hannah Greig and Ellie Cawthorne revisit the notorious Zong massacre, and explore how it exposes the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade.

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This episode was hosted by Ellie Cawthorne and produced by Jack Bateman.

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