William Wilberforce

William Wilberforce was a British politician and philanthropist. He was a leader of the movement to end the slave trade.

Full Name: William Wilberforce

Born: 24 August 1759 in England

Died: 29 July 1833

Best known for: the abolition of Slave Trade

Wilberforce helped found philanthropic groups which helped those in need like:

"The Society for Bettering the Cause of the Poor"

"The Church Missionary Society"

"The British and Foreign Bible Society"

"The Antislavery Society"

Thiswasthe anti-slavery societylogo

Itwasdesignedin1787asasealandit wasanextremelysuccessfulimage whichappearedonbookplates,coat buttons,waxseals,leaflets andpotsas wellasmedals.Itisprobablythefirst exampleofa'logo'designedtosupporta politicalcause.

WhatdidWilberforcedo?

Wilberforce fought for the abolition of the slave trade and for 18 years he regularly introduced anti-slavery motions in Parliament His antislavery efforts finally bore fruit in 1807, when the British Parliament finally abolished the slave trade in the British Empire. Wilberforce then worked to ensure the slave trade laws were enforced and that slavery in the British Empire was abolished. He was a persistent and effective politician, partly due to his natural charm and partly to his resilient character

Slave Trade was abolished in 1807 and Slavery in 1833.

“Youmaychoosetolook theotherwaybutyoucan neversayagainthatyou didnotknow.”

WilliamWilberforce

Superpower: Resilience

Thisisawellknowquotethat WilliamWilberforcesaidatthe endofaparliamentaryspeech tostressthefactthatthere wasnoexcusefortheBritish parliamentnottotakeaction againstSlaveTrade.

Williamjoinedpolitics andwaselected toParliamentfromHull in1780attheageof twenty-oneandwhile stillastudent

Itisestimatedthat10to12million enslavedAfricansweretransportedto Americabetween16thto19thcentury

IntheWestIndies(Central America)Africanslaves weresoldtoplantowners toworkoncoffee,tobacco, cocoa,sugar,andcotton plantations.Theywere soldeitheratSlave auctionsoratmarketswith othergoodsandservices.

How the Slave Trade worked:

British, Portuguese and French were involved in the Atlantic slave trade since the 16th century. Slaves were bought in Africa and transported to West Indies. Due to appalling conditions a high percentage died during the voyage.

SlaveTraders regardedthe Africanslavesas cargotobe transportedtothe Americasasquickly andcheaplyas possible.

MiddlePassage

ThisTradewascalled TriangularTrade.TheSlave TradersloadedshipsinEurope withgoodsthatwerepopularin Africa.TheysailedintoAfrica andexchangedthegoodsfor slaves.Thentheyhadtocross theAtlanticoceanwhichwasa twomonthsjourney(itwasalso calledtheMiddlepassage).

William'sfirst Speechabout SlaveTrade lasted3.5 hours

People in England in 1700s and 1800s not only they weren't aware of what was going on in the Middle passage but they were also in a sort of denial about Slave Trade and it's atrocities. They had to see with their own eyes in order to believe how poorly the African were transported, treated and sometimes tortured.