The Folly of the Plantation Lords

The Drax Family and Charborough Park ​

The generations of wealth enjoyed by the Drax family, which kept their Charborough Park estates splendid and secure, were rooted in some of the oldest and cruelest sugar plantations in Barbados. The vast, open spaces of their English parklands stood in stark opposition to the claustrophobic, brutal conditions of the cane fields. While the Drax family slept soundly in their stately home, the enslaved on their property faced exhaustion, malnutrition, and the constant, agonizing presence of violence, dying early to keep the Drax fortune alive.