A Lancaster University lecturer is one of six authors shortlisted for the UK’s most prestigious history writing award, the Wolfson History Prize 2024.

Dr Nicholas Radburn’s book, ‘Traders in Men: Merchants and the Transformation of the Transatlantic Slave Trade’ (Yale University Press) examines slave-trading merchants in Europe, Africa, and the Americas, and shows how their profit-motivated decisions massively expanded the trade, and powerfully shaped the experiences of enslaved people.

Judges said of the work: “Authoritative and meticulously researched, this is a pioneering reconstruction of the pivotal role of traders in Atlantic slavery, and the strength and complexity of the commercial networks they established.”

The book, authored by Dr Radburn, a Senior Lecturer and historian of the History of the Atlantic World, examines the horrors of one of the darkest eras in human history.

It documents how 18th-century merchants in Britain, Africa and the Americas created the slave trade by devising vicious and cruel new ways of doing business which successfully facilitated the shipment, detainment, and commodification of human beings.

It lays out how traders of the time conspired to facilitate the sale of millions of people, the long-term effects of which continue to reverberate to this day.

Global history dominates the 2024 Wolfson History Prize shortlist, which covers multiple centuries and countries, with a focus on major turning points in the histories of the Americas, Britain, Bangladesh, Germany, India, Pakistan and South Africa.

Sitting alongside Dr Radburn’s book on the shortlist are:

• Shadows at Noon: The South Asian Twentieth Century by Joya Chatterji (The Bodley Head)
• Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire by Nandini Das (Bloomsbury Publishing)
• Our NHS: A History of Britain’s Best-Loved Institution by Andrew Seaton (Yale University Press)
• Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage by Jonny Steinberg (William Collins)
• Out of the Darkness: The Germans, 1942-2022 by Frank Trentmann (Allen Lane)

A distinguished judging panel comprising historians Mary Beard, Richard Evans, Sudhir Hazareesingh, Carole Hillenbrand, Diarmaid MacCulloch and David Cannadine will select one overall winner to be revealed at a ceremony in central London on December 2.

Chair of the Wolfson History Prize judges David Cannadine said: “This year’s shortlist showcases the extraordinary range and breadth of contemporary historical writing. From politics, slavery and international relations to healthcare and societal transformation, the six titles – with subjects spanning continents and centuries – offer profound insights and stand out for their rigorous research and compelling storytelling.”

Dr Radburn, who also works on three major digital humanities projects at Lancaster University, is also known for his development of digital models of two French slave ships used in museums and classrooms around the world.

He said: “I’m delighted and a little stunned to be shortlisted for such a prestigious prize. This is my first book, and I really wanted it to be deeply researched, but also written for a general audience. So being shortlisted for a prize that recognizes those qualities in my work is especially fantastic!”

Now in its 52nd year, the Wolfson History Prize celebrates books that combine excellence in research with readability for a general audience, demonstrating the relevance of history and historical writing to society today.

It is the most valuable history writing prize in the UK, with the winner receiving £50,000 and each of the five shortlisted authors £5,000.