LONDON — The landmark sandstone building of the University of Glasgow stands on land that once belonged to a family of West Indian tobacco merchants who used slave labor on their plantations.

Its rectors included Robert Cunninghame Graham, who owned and sold slaves on his plantation in Jamaica in the 18th century.

Now, the university, one of the oldest in Britain, has acknowledged its links to historical donors who benefited from the slave trade and has promised to raise 20 million pounds, or about $24.5 million, over the next 20 years to research slavery and its impact around the world.

“We’re entering into this in the spirit of reparative justice,” David Duncan, the university’s chief operating officer, said by phone on Friday. The money, to be raised from grants and donations, will not be used to compensate descendants of former slaves, he said, but to sponsor broad research work and academic collaborations on the subject of slavery.