The Sons of Africa
"But is not the slave trade entirely a war with the heart of man? And surely that which is begun by breaking down the barriers of virtue involves in its continuance destruction to every principle, and buries all sentiments in ruin!"
Olaudah Equiano was a significant figure of the British Abolitionist Movement of the transatlantic slave trade.
Just 11 years old, he was taken from his home village of Ibo in the Kingdom Benin and was sold in to slavery: a miserable and dehumanising experience that he would live out for the next seven years. However he was able to buy his freedom for a hefty forty pounds in the year of 1766 and later settled in London. It was here that he was first employed as a free man under the Sierra Leone resettlement project and in 1786 founded the “Sons of Africa”: an abolitionist group consisting of twelve Negro men, who advocated their campaign through various methods including public speeches, writing letters and active agitation of the parliament. Olaudah drew on his own experience as a slave in hope that it would provide an insight into how inhumane and vile the slave trade really was. He also helped to resettle freed slaves.
Source A
In 1788 he led a group of men in support of the bill proposed by William Dolben to limit the number of slaves that ship could carry at a time. As seen in Source A the slaves were arranged in the manner of “cargo” to contain maximum capacity. On this particular ship, Brooks-1786, 609 slaves were transported contrary to the 450 that is suggested on the diagram. This bill aimed to improve the conditions aboard the slave ships by limiting the number of slaves that could be transported.
In the year of 1788 he also appealed to Queen Charlotte through a letter petitioning, the end of slavery in England.
In 1789, after much persuasion from his fellow abolitionists, he published his own life story: The interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. His autobiography in liaison, with this his involvement in the abolition movement, made him a Pioneer of the Abolitionist cause and he spent much of his later life travelling around Britain and Ireland, advocating his cause.
“I trust that my going has been much use to the cause of Abolition of the accursed Slave Trade. A gentleman of the committee, the Revd. Dr. Baker has said that I am more to the use to the cause than half the people in the country- I wish to God, I could be so.”
His prominent role in the British Abolition Movement of the slave trade made him a well-known abolitionist and gave him status that no Negro man in his day could have envisaged. He was respected by both Negro and White folk, for he was an educated man and a born leader. It was made clear to society how ghastly and sadistic the slave trade was and Olaudah and the other abolitionists gained growing support.
Sadly he died in 1797, but his hard work and perseverance was at no loss for the Slave trade was abolished in Britain 10 years later, but only 40 years later was it abolished in the British colonies.
Olaudah Equiano was a significant figure of the British Abolitionist Movement of the transatlantic slave trade.
Just 11 years old, he was taken from his home village of Ibo in the Kingdom Benin and was sold in to slavery: a miserable and dehumanising experience that he would live out for the next seven years. However he was able to buy his freedom for a hefty forty pounds in the year of 1766 and later settled in London. It was here that he was first employed as a free man under the Sierra Leone resettlement project and in 1786 founded the “Sons of Africa”: an abolitionist group consisting of twelve Negro men, who advocated their campaign through various methods including public speeches, writing letters and active agitation of the parliament. Olaudah drew on his own experience as a slave in hope that it would provide an insight into how inhumane and vile the slave trade really was. He also helped to resettle freed slaves.
Source A
In 1788 he led a group of men in support of the bill proposed by William Dolben to limit the number of slaves that ship could carry at a time. As seen in Source A the slaves were arranged in the manner of “cargo” to contain maximum capacity. On this particular ship, Brooks-1786, 609 slaves were transported contrary to the 450 that is suggested on the diagram. This bill aimed to improve the conditions aboard the slave ships by limiting the number of slaves that could be transported.
In the year of 1788 he also appealed to Queen Charlotte through a letter petitioning, the end of slavery in England.
In 1789, after much persuasion from his fellow abolitionists, he published his own life story: The interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. His autobiography in liaison, with this his involvement in the abolition movement, made him a Pioneer of the Abolitionist cause and he spent much of his later life travelling around Britain and Ireland, advocating his cause.
“I trust that my going has been much use to the cause of Abolition of the accursed Slave Trade. A gentleman of the committee, the Revd. Dr. Baker has said that I am more to the use to the cause than half the people in the country- I wish to God, I could be so.”
His prominent role in the British Abolition Movement of the slave trade made him a well-known abolitionist and gave him status that no Negro man in his day could have envisaged. He was respected by both Negro and White folk, for he was an educated man and a born leader. It was made clear to society how ghastly and sadistic the slave trade was and Olaudah and the other abolitionists gained growing support.
Sadly he died in 1797, but his hard work and perseverance was at no loss for the Slave trade was abolished in Britain 10 years later, but only 40 years later was it abolished in the British colonies.
Sons of Africa | |
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