ROYAL AFRICAN COMPANY COMPENSATION ACT (1752). An Act for the Application of a Sum of Money therein mentioned, granted to His Majesty, for making Compensation and Satisfaction to the Royal African Company of England, for their Charter, Lands, Forts, Castles, Slaves, Military Stores, and all other their Effects whatsoever; and to vest the Lands, Forts, Castles, Slaves, and Military Stores, and all other their Effects in the Company of Merchants trading to Africa; and for other Purposes in the Act mentioned.

SETTLING CLAIMS AGAINST THE ROYAL AFRICAN COMPANY. Folio (11.25 inches). 25 George II, Chapter 40. General title leaf + pages 771-830. Royal coat of arms and factotum initial. Text in Black Letter. Neatly extracted from a bound volume. By this Act, the Royal African Company (RAC) was divested of its charter, lands, forts, castles, military stores, canoe men, castle slaves, and all other estate between Port Sallee (thought to be the western-most point of Africa) and the Cape of Good Hope, and the same vested in the name of the Company of Merchants Trading to Africa, in consideration of GBP112,142. All contracts, deeds and accounts were transferred to the new company, and the former company ceased to be a corporation. The new company was also entrusted to raise an army for the protection of their installations and erect courts of judicature. Six hundred and ninety-four castle slaves belonging to the company forts were inventoried in Schedule 1 and categorized according to their skill set, and included: carpenters, blacksmiths, armourers, brickmakers, bricklayers, gunners, goldsmiths, cooks, coppers, doctors servants, chapel servants, gold takers, sawyers, smiths, and masons. Other schedules listed the names of investors and their stock holdings. Three prominent members of the powerful and wealthy Lake family from London appear in the listings: their combined investment in the company was more than GBP16,000 - an enormous sum for the time. Sir Bibye Lake was Deputy-Governor and Sub-Governor of the RAC between 1724 and 1738, and his youngest son Bibye Lake, Esquire was a director of the company at the time of the passing of this Act. The Lakes were also shareholders and directors of the Hudsons Bay Company (HBC): Sir Bibye Lake was the 7th HBC Governor (1712-1743), his eldest son Sir Atwell Lake, Baronet was the 10th HBC Governor (1750-1760), and his youngest son Bibye Lake, Esquire was the 12th HBC Governor (1770-1782). The Company of Merchants Trading to Africa continued operations until 1821.…