Slave Trade Act 1807
The Slave Trade Act ( An Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade; cited as: 47 Geo III Sess 1 c 36. . ) Was adopted by the British Parliament on 25 March, 1807. The Act abolished the slave trade in the British Empire, but not slavery itself
The original text of the law is in the Parliamentary Archives, London.
Slavery on English soil was from the English law not allowed (this position was Somerset ruling on the slave James Somerset supported in litigation 1772), but it remained legal in most of the British Empire, to 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act ( law abolishing the slavery ) was decided.
History, background
1787 had a group of English evangelical Christians, the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade formed along with Quakers to act together against slavery and the slave trade. Leader of this alliance was William Wilberforce ( 1759-1833 ).
The Parliament of Upper Canada decided on 9 July 1793, Act Against Slavery. At that time there were about 300 slaves in Upper Canada.
About 1784 Wilberforce converted on a trip through continental Europe to evangelical Protestantism and began in 1787 his mission to reform the morals ( " Abolition Society " ) and specifically to end the slave trade, supported by abolitionists such as Granville Sharp, Thomas Clarkson, Quakers and Methodists. On October 28, 1787 Wilberforce wrote in his diary:
"God Almighty Has set before me two great objects, the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners. "
In a parliamentary session in 1789, he applied together with his college friend William Pitt, who later became Prime Minister, the abolition of the British slave trade. From this point on, he repeated the introduction of the bill in the Parliament every year except between 1800 and 1803.
Their influence has been magnified by the precarious situation of the government ( "national unity government" ) under Lord Grenville ( 1759-1834 ), because the country was at war. His tenure as Prime Minister was brief and known as "Ministry of All the Talents". Grenville personally fought to ensure that the " Slavery Trade Act " would pass the House of Lords. In the House of the Secretary of State Charles James Fox led (1749-1806) the initiative.
The anti- slavery movement was known as "The Saints".
After about 20 years of campaigns and the fight against slavery, the Parliament adopted after a ten -hour debate the "Slave Trade Act " on February 24, 1807 by four clock in the morning with an unexpected majority of 283 votes to 16 at. On March 25, 1807, the law was enacted. From then on, the African slave trade was banned in the British sphere of influence and slave traders were equated pirates. The internal slave trade in the non- African colonies, however, was still permitted.
The United States passed a the "Slave Trade Act " resembling Act, the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807th This occurred due to a provision in the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed the slave trade until 1808, on 1 January 1808 in force.
Other Nations
Britain used its international strength and influence and urged other nations to end their slave trade. 1805 was a British Order in Council restricts the importation of slaves into colonies that Britain had conquered by France or the Netherlands.
This pressure led to a series of contracts: