{"id":7269,"date":"2026-04-18T18:35:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T18:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/7269\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T18:35:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T18:35:15","slug":"man-in-his-80s-becomes-first-in-france-to-formally-apologise-for-familys-slavery-links","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/7269\/","title":{"rendered":"Man in His 80s Becomes First in France to Formally Apologise for Family’s Slavery Links"},"content":{"rendered":"

April 18 (Reuters) – A man in his 80s \u2060on \u2060Saturday issued what is believed \u2060to be the first formal apology by someone in France for their \u200bfamily’s role in transatlantic slavery, saying he hoped others – including the government- would follow.<\/p>\n

Pierre Guillon de Prince’s ancestors, \u200cbased in Nantes, France’s largest port \u200cfor transatlantic slavery, were shipowners who transported around 4,500 enslaved Africans and owned plantations in the \u2060Caribbean.<\/p>\n

Guillon de \u2060Prince said other French families must confront their historical ties to slavery \u200band the state should go beyond symbolic gestures to address the past, including through reparations.<\/p>\n

“Faced with the rise of racism in our society, I felt a responsibility not to let this past be erased,” the 86-year-old said, \u200badding he wanted to pass the family history on to his grandchildren.<\/p>\n

He delivered the apology \u2060to \u2060a gathering in Nantes ahead \u2060of the inauguration \u200bof an 18-metre replica ship mast, alongside Dieudonn\u00e9 Boutrin, a descendant of enslaved people from the \u200bCaribbean island of Martinique.<\/p>\n

The \u2060two work together at Coque Nomade-Fraternit\u00e9, an association dedicated to “breaking the silence” around slavery, and said the mast would serve as a “beacon of humanity”.<\/p>\n

“Many families of descendants of slave traders don’t dare speak out for fear of reopening old wounds and anger,” said Boutrin, 61. “Pierre’s apology is a courageous act.”<\/p>\n

From the \u206015th to the 19th century, at least 12.5 million Africans were abducted and forcibly \u2060transported, mostly on European ships. France trafficked an estimated 1.3 million people.<\/p>\n

Guillon de Prince’s move follows similar formal apologies – which include commitments to help repair the harm caused by ancestors – by some families in Britain and elsewhere.<\/p>\n

CALLS FOR REPARATIONS GROW<\/p>\n

France recognised transatlantic slavery as a crime against humanity in 2001 but, like most European countries, has never formally apologised for its role.<\/p>\n

During his terms in office, President Emmanuel Macron has expanded access to archives on France’s colonial past. Last year, he said he would establish a commission to \u2060examine France’s history with Haiti, without mentioning reparations.<\/p>\n

Calls for reparations – ranging from official apologies to financial compensation – are growing worldwide, even as critics argue states and institutions should not be held responsible for historical crimes.<\/p>\n

Last month, France abstained at the United Nations from an \u200bAfrica-led resolution declaring slavery the “gravest crime against humanity” and calling for reparations.<\/p>\n

(Reporting by \u200bCatarina Demony in London. Editing by Mark Potter)<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters.<\/p>\n

Photos You Should See \u2013 April 2026<\/p>\n

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