Abolishing slavery in the British colonies: 1823-1838
After Britain ended its direct involvement in the slave trade, there was no immediate clamour to end slavery in its colonies. However, when Wilberforce and Clarkson formed the Anti-Slavery Society in 1823 to end slavery in Britain's colonies, women once more took a direct part in the campaign, contributing to a change in strategy for the organisation.
In 1824, Elizabeth Heyrick, a Leicester Quaker, published 'Immediate, Not Gradual Abolition', which proposed the immediate emancipation of slaves in the British colonies rather than the gradual abolition suggested by the Anti-Slavery Society. Women's societies took up the call and in 1830, the Anti-Slavery Society agreed to the change.
'A slight cultural change now permitted women to sign petitions and so make their views known to parliament.'
The first women-only society was formed in Birmingham in 1825. Others followed, representing the campaign's major organisational development. There was opposition, however, to women's growing public participation in these societies.
Wilberforce commented: 'I fear its tendency would be to mix them in all the multiform warfare of political life.' His fear was well-grounded. A slight cultural change now permitted women to sign petitions and so make their views known to parliament.
In 1833 anti-slavery petitions bore the signatures of 298,785 women, nearly a quarter of the total presented that year. Campaigners built on previous experience. The women of the Birmingham society adopted an original Wedgwood cameo image as their logo. It featured a kneeling female slave and was captioned 'Am I not a Woman and a Sister'. Many groups now reject these passive, supplicant images produced by Wedgwood.
Women were still keen to boycott sugar produced on plantations using slave labour and, now they were organised, they were more able to promote local campaigns.
Many women were also involved with Chartists in the campaign for parliamentary reform and to repeal the Corn Laws. The resulting synergy strengthened each campaign, and created the cultural climate that allowed the reformed parliament to pass the act to end slavery in the British colonies in 1833.
The act became law in 1834 and imposed a period of 'apprenticeship' on slaves that finished in 1838. A national women's petition was organised on behalf of the apprentices and addressed to Queen Victoria. The petition carried 700,000 signatures of women, which was described as 'unprecedented in the annals of petitioning'.
Published: 2007-01-23
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