Slavery, Norman memories" exhibition

What traces of slavery remain in Normandy? How was the territory transformed by the impact of the triangular trade? Who were the men involved in the Atlantic slave trade? Starting on May 10, the symbolic date of the national day of remembrance of the slave trade, slavery and its abolition,the exhibition Esclavage, mémoires normandes presents a first state of scientific knowledge on the involvement of Normans in slavery between 1750 and 1848.

Archival documents, objects and works from territorial public collections take us to the heart of this dark period of
history in Normandy. And this, for the first time, simultaneously in Le Havre, Honfleur and Rouen.

The Rouen exhibition focuses on the economic impact of the triangular trade on Norman society in the early 19th century. From the importation of raw materials that had become commonplace, such as sugar and coffee, to the processing of cotton on the eve of the Industrial Revolution, the Normans saw their daily lives altered by this large-scale circulation. How did this change their reality? How did they position themselves in the abolition debate? These perceptions are explored through the work of contemporary artists. For their part, the Musée de Honfleur considers the issue of the slave trade from a maritime angle, and the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Havre explores its human and individual aspects.

The exhibition is on show at the Musée Industriel de la Corderie Vallois in Notre-Dame de Bondeville until September 17, 2023.

Open daily from 1:30 pm to 6 pm.
Price: €4. Free for under-26s, jobseekers and those on minimum social benefits. Free admission to permanent collections.

The triangular trade in Rouen, and by extension trade relations with the colonies, will collide through multiple narratives. The story of the researcher and guide, the poet and storyteller, the engaged citizen and the passionate woman accompanied by a musician.
You can choose the tour that suits you, or do them all…!

Visit mode: Rouen’s role in the slave trade
A guide from the Rouen Normandy Metropole d’art et d’histoire label, drawing on research already carried out and on research in progress as part of the exhibition, will take you on a tour of the visible traces in our streets of the stakes involved in the triangular trade.
Sunday, May 14, June 25, July 23, September 17 at 3pm
Rdv at the foot of the tide gauge, quai Gaston Boulet, Rouen
Free, https://my.weezevent.com/le-role-de-rouen-dans-la-traite-negriere

En mode musique : Balade sur les traces du passé négrier de Rouen
Aurélie Daniel of Balades Rouennaises, accompanied by musician Philippe Gouyer-Montout, dit Philo tells you about the city’s slave-owning past.
Friday June 16 at 6:30pm,
Place Henri IV, Rouen
Free, https://my.weezevent.com/balade-sur-les-traces-du-passe-negrier-de-rouen

In poetry mode, storytelling: Conte-moi Rouen décoloniale
Florence Capron and her sidekick, actresses, performers, take us on a sensitive exploration of the question of slavery and “human indignity”. A poetic apprehension that gives all its power to the harshness of the subject
Sunday, September 10 at 3pm.
Rdv Place du Champ de Mars in front of the Region gates, Rouen
Free, https://my.weezevent.com/conte-moi-rouen-decoloniale

In militant mode: Balade décoloniale à Rouen
The authors of the book “Guide du Rouen colonial” offer you a stroll that questions the traces of the past in our city, our street names or our statues. An open look at the darker sides of Rouen’s history.
Sunday, September 3, 3pm
Dev: In front of the Hôtel de Région gates (opposite the Champs de Mars esplanade), boulevard Gambetta, Rouen
Free, https://my.weezevent.com/balade-decoloniale-a-rouen