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CHAINS AND CHARITY The passing of the bill was a triumph, but not an end. Having outlawed the slave trade, Wilberforce and his friends spent many years fighting to get the law effectively enforced. They also had to persuade other slaving nations such as France and Spain to abolish the traffic, too, otherwise the slaves would simply be taken by someone else. Right: the House of Commons in the 18th century. |
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  Who were the other major figures in the abolitionist cause? Click here for a who's who of those who fought against slavery. |
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Wilberforce was driven into many other campaigns and causes by his Christian conscience. He supported better conditions for factory workers and chimney sweeps. He opposed bull baiting and was a founder member of the RSPCA. He backed free schools, hospitals and medical dispensaries. He was a founder of the Bible Society, and of the Church Missionary Society, which fought successfully to get missionaries allowed into British India. He personally gave up to £3,000 a year to people in need – equivalent to £150,000 today. He and his evangelical activist friends became known as the Clapham Sect, as several of them lived together in Clapham, south London, and campaigned from there. Wilberforce is criticized for caring only about slaves overseas, and not the exploitation of British workers under his nose. While this is clearly not true, his charity was counter-balanced by support for repressive legislation, such as allowing imprisonment without trial in wartime, and banning trade unions. Next: Freedom! – click here! |
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