Abolition of the Slave Trade

Preparation and Planning

The subject of this lesson should be handled with care and sensitivity. The historical sources feature language that might be seen as racist and offensive when used today. Care should be taken to ensure that students understand this language is not acceptable in modern society. You should refer to the racism policy in place at your own school to ensure that students fully understand that these references should only occur in the context of this lesson and seek guidance on ways to tackle possible comments of a racist or prejudicial nature arising during this lesson.

About the MOD Topic

Making slavery illegal in Britain:
By the eighteenth century, enslaved Africans began to be brought into London and Edinburgh as personal servants. They were not bought or sold, and their legal status was unclear until 1772, when the case of a runaway slave named James Somersett forced a legal decision. Lord Mansfield, Chief Justice of the Court of the King's Bench, had to judge whether the abduction was legal or not under English Common Law as there was no legislation for slavery in England. Despite the disappearance of slavery in Great Britain, slavery was a way of life in the southern colonies of America and the West Indian colonies of the British Empire.

In May 1787, the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade was formed, referring to the Atlantic Slave Trade. This was the trafficking of slaves by British merchants who took manufactured goods from ports such as Bristol and Liverpool, sold or exchanged these for slaves in West Africa, shipped the slaves to British colonies and other Caribbean countries or the American colonies, where they sold or exchanged them mainly to the Planters for rum and sugar, which they took back to British ports. This was the so-called Triangular Trade because these merchants traded in three places during each round-trip.

Key Figures in abolition of the Slave Trade:
Olaudah Equiano (c1745-1797)
Olaudah Equiano's began life in the region of 'Essaka' in Nigeria. His father was an important elder in the village, who helped settle disputes. At an early age, he was kidnapped and forced into domestic slavery in another native village. After some time Equiano was sold to white Slave Traders and taken to Barbados. He changed hands a few times before being bought by Michael Pascal, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy. Equiano was afforded naval training and was able to travel extensively during the Seven Years War with France. Following the war Equiano was bought by Robert King, a Quaker merchant from Philadelphia who traded in the Caribbean.

In his early twenties, Equiano succeeded in buying his freedom. After several years of travels and trading, Equiano travelled to London and became involved with key proponents in the abolitionist movement who persuaded him to write his autobiography, entitled 'The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano', or 'Gustavus Vassa, the African'. It was first published in 1789 and rapidly went through several editions.

James Ramsay (1733-89):
Ramsay entered the Navy in 1757, and served as surgeon aboard the Arundel in the West Indies, under the command of Sir Charles Middleton. In November 1759, the Arundel intercepted a British slave ship, the Swift, and on boarding the vessel, Ramsay found over 100 slaves living in the most inhumane conditions. Such was the scene of filth and degradation he witnessed, that this incident was to have a lasting effect on Ramsay.

In September 1762 Ramsay left the Royal Navy to take holy orders, choosing to work amongst slaves on the Caribbean island of St Christopher (now St Kitts.) He strongly criticised the cruel treatment and punishment meted out to the slaves and became more convinced of the need to improve their conditions. Upon his return to Britain Ramsay worked on his Essay on the Treatment and Conversion of African Slaves in the British Sugar Colonies, published in 1784. It was important in winning support for the abolitionist campaign from some key figures such as the Bishop of Chester as well as bringing the debate about the Slave Trade to public notice.

William Wilberforce (1759-1833):
Wilberforce joined the Quaker led Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade in 1791. The Society had chosen to campaign against the Slave Trade rather than slavery itself, with many members believing that slavery would eventually disappear as a natural consequence of the abolition of the trade. Wilberforce (MP for Kingston upon Hull) was to front the parliamentary leg of the campaign as Quakers were at that time forbidden from public office.

The society was highly successful in raising public awareness and support and local chapters sprang up throughout Great Britain. The committee promoted the campaign, pioneering techniques such as lobbying, writing pamphlets, holding public meetings, gaining press attention, organising boycotts and even using a campaign logo: an image of a kneeling slave above the motto 'Am I not a Man and a Brother?' designed by the renowned pottery-maker Josiah Wedgwood.

The committee also sought to influence slave-trading nations such as France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Holland and the United States, corresponding with anti-slavery activists in other countries and organising the translation of English-language books and pamphlets. Hundreds of parliamentary petitions opposing the Slave Trade were received in 1788 and following years, with hundreds of thousands of signatories in total.

The campaign proved to be the world's first grassroots human rights campaign, in which men and women from different social classes and backgrounds volunteered to end the injustices suffered by others. In 1789 Wilberforce began his parliamentary campaign for the abolition of the Slave Trade. The campaign met with much opposition and many setbacks but on the 25th of March 1807, the Slave Trade Act was approved by the House of Commons by 283 votes to 16 making the Slave Trade illegal throughout the British Empire.

The West Africa Squadron:
The Royal Navy began an anti-slavery patrol in 1808 following Britain's decision to abolish its Slave Trade in 1807. Between 1808 and 1860, the Royal Navy, West Africa Squadron, seized approximately 1600 ships involved in the Slave Trade and freed 150,000 Africans who were aboard these vessels.
Although the Royal Navy is estimated to have captured no more than 10 percent of the ships involved in the Slave Trade, the consistent role of the West Africa Squadron can be argued to have exerted considerable pressure on the nations that continued to trade in slaves after 1807.

There were few benefits to serving on the West Africa squadron. Daily life was tedious, there were little chances of promotion and disease was common. The dangers of the coastal climate were exacerbated by the operational necessity of the men traveling through rivers and swamps in boats and many suffered from fevers. Moreover, the ships of the squadron were unsuited to their task and often easily out-run by the slavers. Between 1830-1865 approximately 1587 men died on the West Africa Squadron (this covers deaths from all causes: disease, killed in action and accidental deaths).

Further Opportunities for Learning

Ask the students to produce a world charter or campaign to protect people from modern day slavery.
Students carry out further research into current slavery issues and organisations who campaign against this. This represents a possibility for a topic which students could choose for their GCSE Citizenship Coursework.

Student worksheet answers

Download the teachers notes PDF to access the answers for this lesson.