A public campaign once again promoted the cause, and the new Whig government was in favour as well. In January , the Abolition Bill was once again introduced, this time attracting very considerable support, and, on 23 February , almost fifteen years after Dundas had effectively wrecked abolition with his gradualist amendment, Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of abolition of the slave trade.
His speech concluded with a long and emotional tribute to Wilberforce in which he contrasted the peaceful happiness of Wilberforce in his bed with the tortured sleeplessness of the guilty Napoleon Bonaparte.
In the words of Romilly's biographer; Wilberforce was overcome by the power of Romilly's concluding passages, and sat with his head on his hands, tears streaming down his face. As Romilly reached his final sentences the House broke into one of those scenes that it reserves for great occasions.
Members stood and cheered him tumultuously. According to The Morning Chronicle he received 'three distinct and universal cheers'. Scenes such as this are rare in the House of Commons, where applause is forbidden, but this report, or one like it, must have reached William Hey, the Yorkshire surgeon, evangelical, and former Mayor of Leeds, for on February 28 he wrote to Wilberforce to ask if it was true.
The Abolition Act received the Royal Assent became law on 25 March but, although the trade in slaves had become illegal in British ships, slavery remained a reality in British colonies. Wilberforce himself was privately convinced that the institution of slavery should be entirely abolished, but understood that there was little political will for emancipation.
Already recognised as an elder statesman in his 50s, Wilberforce received a steady throng of visitors and supplicants, and he became involved in many of the political questions of the day. He supported Catholic Emancipation and the Corn Laws.
His health was poor, however, and in he resigned the large and arduous seat of Yorkshire for the pocket borough of Bramber. In the same year he started work on the Slave Registration Bill, which he saw as necessary to ensure compliance with the Abolition Act.
If slaves were registered, he argued, it could be proved whether or not they had been recently transported from Africa. Thereafter, Wilberforce's efforts met with increasing resistance from the government. In , with the government again blocking progress, Wilberforce publically declared that as they would not support him, he felt himself no longer bound by their line on emancipation. From this time on, Wilberforce campaigned openly for an end to the institution of slavery.
Wilberforce's health, never good, was deteriorating. Although now free to speak his mind on emancipation, he was never able to campaign with the same vigour that he had done for abolition of the trade. However, he continued to attack slavery both at public meetings and in the House of Commons.
In , he published another pamphlet attacking slavery. This pamphlet was connected with the foundation of The Anti-Slavery Society which led the campaign to emancipate all slaves in British colonies. Leadership of the parliamentary campaign, however, was passed from Wilberforce to Thomas Fowell Buxton. In , Wilberforce resigned from the House of Commons.
He enjoyed a quiet retirement at Mill Hill, just north of London, although he suffered some financial difficulties. His last public appearance was at a meeting of the Anti-Slavery Society in , at which, at Thomas Clarkson's suggestion, he took the chair. In parliament, the Emancipation Bill gathered support and received its final commons reading on 26 July Slavery would be abolished, but the planters would be heavily compensated. Three days later, on 29 July , he died. He is buried in Westminster Abbey.
Cadell, jun. Davies, J. An abridgement of A Practical View Wilberforce's many parliamentary speeches have never been collected into one place. He then worked to ensure the slave trade laws were enforced and, finally, that slavery in the British Empire was abolished.
Wilberforce's health prevented him from leading the last charge, though he heard three days before he died that the final passage of the emancipation bill was ensured in committee. Though some historians argue that Thomas Clarkson and others were just as important in the antislavery fight, Wilberforce in any account played a key role in, as historian G. Trevelyan put it, "one of the turning events in the history of the world.
Sections Home. Bible Coronavirus Prayer. Subscribe Member Benefits Give a Gift. Subscribers receive full access to the archives. Christian History Archives Eras Home. More People Activists. William Wilberforce. Current Issue November Subscribe. Read This Issue. Subscribe to Christianity Today and get instant access to past issues of Christian History! Get the best from CT editors, delivered straight to your inbox! Tags: Politics Slavery William Wilberforce.
Issue One hundred fifty years before C. Lewis, William Wilberforce wrote the Mere Christianity of his time. An "Ordinary Saint" in Wartime. William Wilberforce saw two long charitable campaigns through, even in war's distracting shadow.
After a crushing political defeat, William Wilberforce nearly gave up his fight to abolish the slave trade. But a life-changing letter from John Newton sent this Daniel back into the lion's den. Wilberforce's other efforts to 'renew society' included the organisation of the Society for the Suppression of Vice in Its goal was to provide all children with regular education in reading, personal hygiene and religion.
He was also instrumental in encouraging Christian missionaries to go to India. Wilberforce retired from politics in and died on 29 July , shortly after the act to free slaves in the British empire passed through the House of Commons. He was buried near his friend Pitt in Westminster Abbey. Search term:. Read more. This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets CSS enabled.
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