Cesar Picton

Cesar Picton was enslaved in Africa by the time he was about six years old. He was bought and brought to England by an English army officer who had been in Senegal, and in 1761 was “presented” as a servant to Sir John Phillips, a Baronet living in Norbiton near Kingston upon Thames in Surrey. He later became a wealthy coal merchant in Kingston.

In June 1762, Cesar was taken to Picton Castle where he trained in household work and was educated. He never became a servant as Sir John’s only surviving son already had a servant. Cesar was treated very well by the family and was accepted as one of their own. Lady Philipps died when he was about 33, and left him the large sum of £100 in her will. He also received legacies from her daughters on their deaths.

After he received his inheritance from Lady Philipps, the family sold Norbiton Place and the daughters moved to Hampton Court. Cesar rented a modest house in Kingston and at some point in 1788 he bought the house and assumed the surname 'Picton' from the name of the castle where he spent his early years. Intriguingly, Cesar was never active in the abolitionist movement, and was never a signatory of letters and petitions concerning the slave trade. Sir John had an interest in, and connections to, the coal industry, undoubtedly sparking Cesar’s choice of business. In 1816 he bought a large cottage in Thames Ditton for the astonishing sum of £400, far above his inheritance, showing he had become a wealthy businessman.

Cesar Picton died on 10 June 1836, aged 81, a wealthy and respected man, and was buried in All Saint’s Church in Kingston.