Anti-Slavery Society (1823–1838) facts for kids

The Anti-Slavery Society was a group formed in 1823. Its main goal was to end slavery across the British Empire. This important goal was mostly achieved by 1838, thanks to a law called the Slavery Abolition Act 1833.

This society was first known by a very long name: the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery Throughout the British Dominions. In 1838, it was briefly called the London Anti-Slavery Society before it stopped existing.

After this society closed, a new one was started in 1839. It was called the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society. This new group, also known as the Anti-Slavery Society, was founded by an English activist named Joseph Sturge. Its mission was to fight against slavery all over the world. Today, after some changes and mergers, this organization is known as Anti-Slavery International.

Why the Anti-Slavery Society Started

People who wanted to end slavery, called abolitionists, had been thinking about ending it for a long time. In 1787, a group called the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade was formed. They worked to stop the trade of enslaved people across the Atlantic Ocean. At that time, Britain was a major player in this trade, bringing people from Western Africa to the Americas.

In 1807, the Slave Trade Act 1807 made the slave trade illegal in the British Empire. However, this law did not free the enslaved people. It only stopped new people from being brought in. After this, British abolitionists focused on ending slavery itself. They first aimed to free enslaved people in British colonies. Later, they worked to end slavery in other parts of the world, like the United States, other European colonies, and places in the Middle East, Africa, and China where slavery had existed for a long time.

How the Anti-Slavery Society Worked

The Anti-Slavery Society was officially started on January 31, 1823. A group of men met at a tavern in London to form it. The society was known by several slightly different names, but "Anti-Slavery Society" was the most common.

Many of the people who started the society had already been fighting against slavery. Their beliefs were often based on their Christian faith. A religious movement called evangelicism had inspired many Anglicans and other Christian groups. Like many other volunteer groups, the society had members who paid fees, a committee, and leaders, including a secretary.

Some important founding members included:

• William Wilberforce (a famous leader, though he wasn't involved in daily tasks).
• Thomas Clarkson.
• Thomas Fowell Buxton.
• Zachary Macaulay (who, like Wilberforce, was part of a group called the Clapham Sect).
• MP James Stephen.
• Businessman James Cropper.
• Quaker banker Samuel Gurney.
• Thomas Babington Macaulay.

Thomas Pringle was the secretary. Other supporters included MP William Smith, lawyers like Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux and Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman, judge Stephen Lushington, and Irish leader Daniel O'Connell.

Women also played a big part. Groups like the Birmingham and West Bromwich Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves were formed by women and supported the Anti-Slavery Society.

The society also helped publish the first story written by a Black woman who had been enslaved. This was Mary Prince's book, The History of Mary Prince, A West Indian Slave (1831), which Thomas Pringle helped organize.

Different Ideas on Ending Slavery

Not everyone in the society agreed on the best way to end slavery. Some members believed in a slow, step-by-step process. They thought changes should happen gradually. Others, especially younger members, felt that slavery was completely wrong and should be ended immediately.

A pamphlet written by Elizabeth Heyrick in 1824, called "Immediate, not Gradual, Abolition," pushed for quick action.

This group, which included Joseph Sturge, campaigned across Britain. They wanted to create strong public pressure for a new law to outlaw slavery right away. They didn't want to wait for slow talks with colonial governments. In 1831, George Stephen and Joseph Sturge formed a special group within the Anti-Slavery Society called the Agency Committee. They pushed hard for a new law.

Their efforts and public pressure led to the Slavery Abolition Act 1833. This law was a big step, even though it included some compromises that the activists didn't like.

Some mixed-race campaigners from Jamaica, like Louis Celeste Lecesne and Richard Hill, were also members of the Anti-Slavery Society.

The Agency Committee, led by Sturge, strongly opposed new systems like indentured labour. These systems often forced people into long-term work, which felt too much like slavery. The 1833 Act took several years to fully take effect. Slavery was finally abolished across the British West Indies on August 1, 1838.

After this, many members of the original Anti-Slavery Society felt their work was done. They believed they had achieved their goal of ending slavery in British territories.

The organization was renamed the London Anti-Slavery Society in 1838, and then it stopped existing that same year.

The Anti-Slavery Society of 1839

Once slavery was abolished in British lands, abolitionists from the Agency Committee felt a new organization was needed. They wanted to fight slavery everywhere in the world. Joseph Sturge led the effort to form this new group, the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, on April 17, 1839. This new society also became widely known as the Anti-Slavery Society.

See also

• American Anti-Slavery Group
• Brazilian Anti-Slavery Society