William Wilberforce

William Wilberforce was born in Hull in 1759 and studied at Cambridge before entering Parliament in 1780. His public life became closely associated with evangelical Christianity and the campaign against Britain's participation in the transatlantic slave trade.^[2]

In 1787 he agreed to act as the campaign's parliamentary spokesman. He worked alongside people including Thomas Clarkson and Granville Sharp and with a movement sustained by petitions, publications, organising, and the testimony of people affected by slavery. The parliamentary role was important, but the wider struggle was not the work of one man.^{[1] [2]}

Repeated opposition delayed legislation. The slave-trade abolition law received royal assent in March 1807. Abolishing the trade was distinct from abolishing slavery itself; the two should not be treated as one event.^{[1] [2]}

Wilberforce married Barbara Spooner in 1797. He also supported Christian societies, including Bible and missionary work. His religious commitments therefore shaped several dimensions of his public service.^[2]

He died on 29 July 1833 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. His legacy belongs within a collective history of abolition, including the resistance of enslaved people and the efforts of activists whose work did not take place in Parliament.^{[1] [2]}