University of Cambridge admits it gained from slave trade

On 22 September Britain's University of Cambridge acknowledged it had benefited from the proceeds of slavery over its history, and promised to expand scholarships for black students and fund more research into the murderous trade, writes Alistair Smout for Reuters.

The acknowledgement comes as a string of leading institutions – from the Bank of England to the Church of England – have been re-evaluating the central role that slavery had in enriching Britain and how they benefited from its injustices.

Cambridge said an investigation it commissioned had found no evidence that the university itself ever owned slaves or plantations directly. But the findings showed it had received “significant benefits” from slavery. Those came from university benefactors who had made their money from the slave trade, the university's investments in companies that participated in it, and fees from plantation-owning families, according to the investigation's report.
Full report on the Reuters site