Historical Perspectives: William Wilberforce
This month marks a full year of free thinking for the New Free Thinkers. Accordingly, we will be publishing a set of “Historical Perspectives” examining the lives of young men and women in history. Their stories show how God uses everyday people to accomplish amazing things. We hope they will inspire you as you celebrate with us!
William Wilberforce, the son of a rich merchant, was born in Hull in 1759. His father died when he was very young, after which he was raised by his aunt—a very heavy supporter of the Methodist movement. His mother did not support the movement nor accept what it stood for, so she brought him back to the family home.
At seventeen he enrolled at Saint John’s college, where he befriended William Pitt. After attending college for a while, Wilberforce decided to to enter the realm of politics in order to “achieve political success,” which he later found was not the right motive. Wilberforce and Pitt ended up becoming political celebrities because of their wit and charm.
It is amazing how God chooses us at such young ages and uses us in greater ways than we could imagine. I’m sure that at this point in his life, Wilberforce had no idea that God would use him in such a radical way.
In 1784 he decided to convert to Evangelical Christianity. After studying the practice for some time, he decided to write a book encouraging others to change their morality and regain true Christian values in their lives. William began to look at his political views with a Christian perspective—and change them. God was using this young man to accomplish His work.
Three years later, Wilberforce decided involve himself in one of the greatest political efforts of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries: the abolition of slavery. In 1787 Wilberforce became the parliamentary leader of the abolitionist movement. It was a large task, considering that most of England’s wealth depended on the slave trade. People involved with it would not look fondly on his work. Despite what others thought and the vastness of this task, he continued the work God had set before him.
In 1788 William presented his Abolitionist Bill before the house for the first time; it would not be the last. In a moving three-hour-long speech, he spoke on the horrible facts of slavery. He ended with the words “having heard all of this you may choose to look the other way, but you can never again say that you did not know.” Newspaper writers praised this oration, saying it was “one of the most eloquent speeches ever read in the house.”
Wilberforce tried with all his might to get the bill passed, but it failed year after year. Finally, in 1807, the Abolition Bill was passed concerning all slave ships. This was a very emotional day for Wilberforce; after the bill passed he cried, because his dream had finally been met.
But that dream only stopped the ships: slavery was still together. After the victory of 1807, William turned all his resources to the emancipation of slaves. In 1823 he published the paper “Appeal on Behalf of the Negro Slaves”. This led to the Anti-Slavery Society, which eventually led to the emancipation campaign.
The emancipation bill slowly gained support and was approved July 26th 1833, about a year after he retired from Parliament. At the news, Wilberforce said “Thank God that I have lived to witness a day in which England is willing to give twenty million sterling for the abolition of slavery.”
It is amazing how God uses young people, especially those who will be diligent and persistent in the mission God has for them. Because of their youth, they have more that God can spend.