Sarah Forbes Bonetta’s Story Illuminates Britain’s Colonial History

A new biography, “Becoming Sarah Forbes Bonetta: A Yorùbá Woman in Queen Victoria’s Court,” revisits the life of a girl presented to Queen Victoria at age seven as a “diplomatic gift.” Born Àìná, Bonetta was orphaned when Dahomey’s forces attacked her town in what is now south-western Nigeria. She was eventually taken to England, where she became a ward of Queen Victoria. The biography’s author, Henry Lovejoy, argues Bonetta was effectively indentured to the crown until 19 and used as imperial propaganda. According to him, the little girl was used to project the queen’s benevolence and to promote the idea that Britain’s colonization of Africa was a “civilizing mission.” The book challenges claims that Bonetta was a Yoruba princess or Queen Victoria’s goddaughter, offering a different perspective on Black British history and its colonial connections.