Popular Freedmen of the late 18th
Century and their effect on the British Abolition Movement
The
abolition movement in Britain that developed momentum in the late 18th
century has attracted much attention from many present day historians. The movement’s success, given the economic
benefit and dependence of slavery in the Atlantic World, make the British
social movement all the more important in the scope of world history. As British public support for abolition grew,
popular black leadership emerged to become an important aspect of organizing
and encouraging the movement to fruition.
The purpose of this paper is to outline the actions taken by popular
black freedmen in support of the British abolition movement, place value on the
efforts of said black leaders to the overall success of the movement, and
finally to argue that though not necessarily vital to the movements success,
freedmen had an important effect on the relatively quick buildup of public
support that would produce historic social change.
* * * * *
Popular
British freedmen found a purpose in the abolition movement, providing many
important literary works that proved important to its success. Olaudah Equiano and Ottabah Cugoano were
perhaps the most active and integral parts of the black presence in the British
social movement. In Cugoano’s Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evil of
Slavery (1787) he wrote a very radical, yet Christian, critique of the
institution of slavery while “boldly adding arguments for the abolition of the
slave trade and the creation of a maritime blockade against slavers.”[1] Partnering
with Equiano, they established the ‘Sons of Africa’, an anti-slavery committee
whose membership comprised of London’s black community. Both Cugoano and Equiano committed themselves
to “touring the country, speaking out against slavery and focusing attention on
black people throughout the world.”[2]
Equiano
became the “most articulate spokesman for the African cause,”[3]
successfully networking with the most prominent abolitionists, including Thomas
Clarkson, Granville Sharp, and Thomas Hardy, to whom Equiano provided political
contacts that Hardy used to “usher in the radical movement of the 1790s.”[4] Equiano’s
written account of his past, The
Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano (1789), was wildly
successful. The ensuing “book tour
brought him into communities across the nation, and with a string of public and
private correspondence, newspaper accounts, and self-placed advertisements,
Equiano moved from cultural ‘void’ to national fame.”[5]
Equiano
and Cugoano’s contribution to the abolition movement in Britain is without
question. Their dedication to the cause
is well documented. That said, given the
understanding of the abolitionist action both before and after their influence,
it is difficult to gauge an accurate value on their contribution to British
abolition. Many historians would agree
that the abolition movement in Britain was well underway before the significant
contributions of Equiano or Cugoano.[6] The Somerset
case, arguably the most important factor preempting British abolition, took
place more than 15 years before either author published their influential
writings. In his effort to pursue legal action in Somerset, Granville Sharp had already been a committed pursuer of
abolition well before ever meeting Equiano.
Further more, after 1772 there was little evidence of slave sales and
forced deportations in mainland Britain, “but in no case did an English court
ever uphold a master’s claim to a slave’s service as slave after 1772.”[7] Though not outright abolition, the Somerset case was a clear step in the
direction of abolition, and perhaps the most damning to the British slave trade
up to that point.
Abolitionist sentiment
and literature were prevalent both before and after Equiano and Cugoano
influenced the movement. Literary
accounts of the atrocities inflicted on African slaves by their white masters
were common. “Eighteenth-century culture
was saturated with casual references to the violence done to social norms by
the slave trade,”[8] leading
the British to question the glaring contradiction between their Christian faith
and their economic dominance of the slave trade. British citizens from all walks of life found
themselves indignant to the practice of slavery.
Quakers were some
of the earliest actors in the abolition movement, playing a key part in the
creation of the London of a Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave
Trade, which provided the committee with “experience in business organization,
sources of funding, and a publishing and distribution network.”[9] Abolition of the slave trade was an ongoing
process, and would not come to fruition until 1807, while emancipation would
take more then three decades to become a reality (1833). During that period of time, countless British
actively participated in the movement for social reform, answering the call
that produced waves of demonstrated public support.[10] Women became a force in the movement,
pursuing abolition in defense of what they deemed “an attack on the family,”[11]
while utilizing their position in the home to empower the boycott of slave cultivated
products.[12]
With the constant
increase of public support and increasing participation in the pursuit of
abolition, it can be argued that it was only a matter of time before the dwindling
ruling elite would have to listen. That
said; it is important to see the underlying effect of the popular contributions
of freedmen such as Cugoano and Equiano.
It is not coincidence that the first recognized wave of abolition
mobilization took place during the years 1788-1792, the same period of time in
which Cugoano and Equiano experienced the peak of their popularity. In fact, “until 1786, the handful of active
abolitionists were still working in virtual isolation from each other.”[13] Even
abolitionist leadership was generally unaware of each other or actions being
taken by different sects of the movement.
In reality, the British abolition movement was in need of a spark,
something that would speak to the very nature of British culture.
Through their
writings and public calls for reform, Cugoano and Equiano effectively forced
the British public to reassess its ideas of humanity and Christianity, while
simultaneously bringing the hypocrisy of slavery to the forefront of debate. The literary works of Cugoano and Equiano, as
well as other articulate freedmen, were a glaring example of the African
capacity for intelligence. By writing in
a manner that encompassed both British linguistic intricacy and devout
Christian faith, Cugoano and Equiano were able to connect their readers
emotionally to their stories of African hardship and injustice. Cugoano and Equiano induced a sensible and
articulate rhetoric to successfully appeal “to the European readership’s
emotional and moral sensibilities in order to humanize the African and call for
the abolition of the slave trade.”[14]
Perhaps the most
important aspect their writing, aside from their literacy, was their use of
Christian virtue to appeal to the Christian British majority. By being devout in their own pursuits of
Christianity, Cugoano and Equiano are successful in forcing the British public
to look at the realities of slavery in the context of their professed Christian
faith. As Cugoano wrote, it was manifest
and “evidently the incumbent duty of all men of enlightened understanding, and
of every man that has any claim or affinity to the name of Christian, that the
base treatment which the African Slaves undergo, out to be abolished…”[15]
In writings such as this he “captures the obvious: Christianity’s guiding
principle ‘love thy neighbor as thyself’ threatens the slave trade’s concept of
the black slave as a piece of property.”[16] The use of Christian rhetoric was a common
theme of all abolitionist propaganda, regardless of whether the author white or
black. What made the writings of Cugoano
and Equiano so radical was that fact that they were Africans capable of
eloquently drawing upon the bible to enforce their attack on slavery.[17]
Critics were hard
pressed to counter Cugoano or Equiano head on.
Equiano was famous for his exchanges published in print media, most
importantly his exchange with James Tobin in The Public Advertiser in which Tobin questioned the integrity of
and general humanity of male African slaves.
In his response, Equiano eloquently and intelligently dismisses Tobin’s
accusations with the use of reason and reference of scripture.[18] With the literary prowess of Cugoano and
Equiano having proved solid, critics shifted their attacks to the authenticity
of their literary works themselves. This
also proved unsuccessful for the slave trade advocates, as both Cugoano and
Equiano were readily available to the public, whether in the presence of
nobility or touring the countryside in support of abolition. Equiano in particular capitalized on his
ability to familiarize and legitimize himself to his audience through
Shakespearean affilitation.
“Establishing a Shakespearean framework for his alterity, Equiano
courted the curious on his book tour, all while foiling those who insisted that
theories of racial inferiority justified the slave trade.”[19]
The actions and
accomplishments of Cugoano and Equiano are without question in the sphere of British
abolition. Their literary success and
public campaigning in support of the abolition of slavery directly affected the
social movement’s path to success. That
said; it is impossible to place an exact value on their efforts in the overall
picture. It would not be fair to
important British abolition leaders who laid the groundwork well before the
success of Cugoano and Equiano. This is
especially important given the economic profitability and British control of
the Atlantic slave trade, which evidence suggests was booming after 1783.[20] The grassroots efforts of countless British
contributed to a growing sentiment of moral inadequacy well before popular
freedmen influence. The effect, however,
of Cugoano and Equiano and their contributions to the abolishment must be
looked at for their effect on the British public. Cugoano and Equiano’s writings and public
actions forced the British public to reassess their understanding of humanity
and morality as a society of based in both British and Christian culture. In this process, Cugoano and Equiano were
successful in humanizing Africans while cementing the issue of slavery at the
forefront of British society through several lulls and mobilizations.
[1] Drescher,
Seymour S. "Public Opinion and Parliament in the Abolition of the British
Slave Trade," Parliamentary History 26, (-06, 2007): 52-53.
[2] Mtubani,
Victor C. D. "The Black Voice in Eighteenth-Century Britain: African
Writers Against Slavery and the Slave Trade," Phylon (1960-) 45,
no. 2 (1984): 97.
[4]
Walvin: Impact of Slavery, 345.
[5]
John Bugg: the other interesting… 1426.
[6] Drescher,
Seymour. "Whose Abolition? Popular Pressure and the Ending of the British
Slave Trade," Past & Present no. 143 (1994): 165.
[7] Cotter,
William W. R. "The Somerset Case and the Abolition of Slavery in England,"
History (London) 79, no. 255 (-02, 1994): 44.
[8]
Drescher, "Public Opinion and Parliament in the Abolition of the British
Slave Trade," 45.
[9]
Drescher, "Public Opinion and Parliament in the Abolition of the British
Slave Trade," 47.
[10]
Drescher, "Whose Abolition? Popular Pressure and the Ending of the British
Slave Trade" 140.
[11]
Drescher, "Public Opinion and Parliament in the Abolition of the British
Slave Trade," 50.
[12]
Elizabeth A O'Donnell, "'THERE'S DEATH IN THE POT!' THE BRITISH FREE
PRODUCE MOVEMENT AND THE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE
TO THE NORTH-EAST OF ENGLAND," Quaker Studies 13, no. 2 (2009): 184.
[13]
Drescher, "Public Opinion and Parliament in the Abolition of the British
Slave Trade" 45.
[14] Gunn,
Jeffrey. "Creating a Paradox: Quobna Ottobah Cugoano and the Slave Trade's
Violation of the Principles of Christianity, Reason, and Property Ownership,"
Journal of World History 21, no. 4 (2010): 636
[15]
Cugoano, Ottabah. Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evil and Wicked Traffic of the Slavery
and Commerce of the Human Species: Humbly Submitted to the Inhabitants of Great
Britain, (1878), 3.
[16]
Gunn, "Creating a Paradox: Quobna Ottobah Cugoano and the Slave Trade's
Violation of the Principles of Christianity, Reason, and Property Ownership,"
637.
[17] Ibid.,
640.
[18] Allison,
Robert J. The Interesting Narrative of
the Life of Olaudah Equiano: Written by Himself with Related Documents,
Boston: Bedford/ St. Martin’s, 2007, 216.
[19]
Bugg, John. "The Other Interesting Narrative: Olaudah Equiano's Public
Book Tour," PMLA.Publications of the Modern Language Association of
America 121, no. 5 (2006): 1436.
[20]
Walvin, James. "Why did the British Abolish the Slave Trade? Econocide
Revisited," Slavery & Abolition 32, no. 4 (2011): 585.
