At Southwark Cathedral and nearby Tooley Street, we remember 'Reasonable' Blackman, a skilled silk weaver of colour in Tudor London. Living in St Saviour’s Parish with his English wife and family, he had at least three children, two of whom tragically died in the plague of 1592.

Married by 1578, Reasonable would have needed resources and social standing to complete the betrothal process. Silk was a luxury in Tudor times, and his ability to produce and sell fashionable silk to wealthy clients suggests he was highly skilled and successful. His unusual name may have reflected the “reasonable” prices he charged for his fine goods.

The details of his origins remain uncertain; he may have come to Britain via the Netherlands and could have been from Cape Verde. His remarkable life is explored in Miranda Kaufmann’s Black Tudors (2017).