William Wilberforce and the Abolition of Slavery

This article was written by Ian J Shaw and was first published in the March/April 2024 edition of Evangelical Magazine. Reproduced here with kind permission.

Human trafficking and modern slavery remain terrible and persistent problems. In 2010, a United Kingdom Act of Parliament introduced a national day to raise awareness of the need to eradicate all forms of slavery, human trafficking and exploitation. Awareness of the seriousness of this issue was raised 200 years ago through the formation of what became known as the Anti-Slavery Society, founded in London in 1823. The founders, who were motivated by strong Christian principles, included Thomas Fowell Buxton and William Wilberforce.

Driven by evangelical convictions

Wilberforce became a Member of Parliament at the age of 21. A close friend of the young William Pitt, who became prime minister aged just 24, Wilberforce appeared destined for high political office. Instead, as news of his conversion to evangelicalism in 1785 became widely known, he was approached by campaigners for the abolition of the slave trade who urged him to become a parliamentary advocate in the cause. It was a challenge he accepted only after much prayer and heart-searching and with the encouragement of John Newton, a converted former slave trader.

John Wesley also urged Wilberforce into the cause of the abolition of the slave trade which he described as a ‘villainy, which is the scandal of religion.’ He warned him of the challenges ahead: ‘Unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But if God be for you, who can be against you?’ Wilberforce was ably assisted by his friends in the ‘Clapham Sect’, a group of evangelical MPs who were convinced they should use their wealth and influence, especially in parliament, to promote social reform.

Wilberforce declared, ‘God has set before me two great objects, the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners [morality].’ He made it a badge of evangelicalism to oppose slavery. He showed great political acumen, recognizing the need to form alliances and work steadily and persistently. He also understood the need to mobilise popular support through speeches and encouraging popular petitions.

At the heart of the campaign was Wilberforce’s conviction that the Bible provided the principles upon which slavery was to be abolished, making use of texts such as Exodus 21:16and 1 Timothy 1:9-10. The biblical ideas of redemption and liberation drew evangelicals into the abolition cause with a zeal and perseverance others could not match. Setting slaves free from the physical bondage of slavery appeared externally to represent the inward spiritual experience of Christian believers. Also, the campaigners believed that the abolition of slavery would make it easier for slaves to embrace the Christian faith. Coupled with this was a sense of guilt that the nation and its colonies were profiting from keeping humans in bondage. This, it was feared, had placed the land under the judgement of God, and abolition would lift this heavy burden.

Determined to complete the task

Wilberforce faced political and economic opposition from British plantation owners in the West Indies, merchants and traders involved in the Atlantic trade. The French Revolution had made political leaders in Britain resistant to any change that might destabilise the status quo. Wilberforce also battled constant ill-health, leaving him debilitated and in pain each day.

In 1798, Wilberforce introduced into parliament twelve resolutions condemning the slave trade, declaring, ‘So much misery condensed in so little room is more than the human imagination had ever before conceived.’ Its wickedness appeared ‘so enormous, so dreadful, so irremediable.’ The first bill to abolish the slave trade was defeated in 1791, but it was re-introduced the next year. This passed in the House of Commons, but was stalled by the House of Lords. In the following years a succession of eleven parliamentary bills were rejected. Finally, in 1807, the measure for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in British ships was passed by both Houses and received its royal assent. Only 16 MPs opposed it. After 18 years of campaigning, dedication and determination, Wilberforce attributed the victory to the hand of God.

The social concern of Wilberforce extended far beyond slavery. In his lifetime he was a member of sixty-nine charities. In 1787 he persuaded the king, George III, to issue a Royal Proclamation against Vice and Immorality. Efforts to enforce the proclamation were undertaken by the Proclamation Society, which became the Society for the Suppression of Vice in 1802. His book A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System (1797) clearly set out his evangelical convictions, challenging the nominal Christianity of many of the middle and upper classes in Britain, and reminding the rich of their duty to the poor. He also worked for prison and factory reform, and for the protection of children used to sweep chimneys. He sought to reduce excessive penalties imposed for some minor crimes. Wilberforce was a founder of the Society for Bettering the Conditions and Increasing the Comforts of the Poor, which helped those suffering most through the harsh working and living conditions occasioned by the Industrial Revolution. The society promoted the welfare and education of children working in factories, and the provision of soup kitchens for the unemployed. In 1824 he was also one of the founders of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Wilberforce combined moral earnestness with practical philanthropy. He generously gave away thousands of pounds each year from the fortune he inherited from his father, to charities and needy individuals, including those in debt. His whole life was underwritten by an intense evangelical devotion, often spending several hours a day in prayer.

Having succeeded in securing the abolition of the slave trade in British ships, in 1823 Wilberforce helped launch the next phase of the campaign, the abolition of slavery itself. The ongoing Napoleonic war, and the economic depression after it ended, had hindered further progress towards the abolition of slavery in the years after the success of 1807. Wilberforce was by now elderly and infirm, and the campaign’s leadership was largely undertaken by others. Three days before his death in 1833, Wilberforce rejoiced to hear that the emancipation bill had been passed. As a result, nearly 800,000 slaves in British colonies were eventually freed. Yet, the measure was controversial. Slaves were not released immediately, but gradually over a period of up to six years. Also, slave owners were paid compensation for the loss of their ‘property’ – the slaves who had been released. Compromise had been necessary to get the measure through.

The achievement of Wilberforce and his friends in the Clapham Sect over fifty years was enormous. Although only a minority in Parliament, through their work to abolish the slave trade and slavery, and initiating factory legislation and humanitarian reform, they helped ease some of the worst social problems of their age.

This article is based on a section of the book, Evangelicals and Social Action, by Dr Ian J. Shaw, published by IVP.