William Wilberforce
English politician and abolitionist (1759-1833) · United Kingdom · On the map · Politicians · Died at 73
William Wilberforce was a British politician, philanthropist, and a leader of the movement to abolish the Atlantic slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, and became an independent Member of Parliament (MP) for Yorkshire (1784-1812).
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A statue of William Wilberforce outside Wilberforce House, his birthplace in Hull
William Wilberforce by John Rising, 1790, pictured at the age of 30
Diagram of a slave ship, the Brookes, illustrating how slaves were transported
"Am I Not a Man and a Brother?" Medallion created as part of anti-slavery campaign by Josiah Wedgwood, 1787
The House of Commons in Wilberforce's day by Augustus Pugin and Thomas Rowlandson (1808-1811)
William Wilberforce, an unfinished portrait by Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1828
Wilberforce was buried in Westminster Abbey next to Pitt. This memorial statue, by Samuel Joseph (1791-1850), was erected in 1840 in the north choir aisle.About this person
In 1785, he underwent a conversion experience and became an evangelical Anglican, which resulted in major changes to his lifestyle and a lifelong concern for reform.
