William Wilberforce (1759-1833) was an English abolitionist. He was born in Yorkshire, England and studied at Cambridge. He became a member of the House of Commons in 1790 where he remained for over 30 years. Through the influence of John Newton, one of his former teachers, he became a devout evangelical Christian and an advocate for social reforms. His efforts to abolish the slave trade were achieved in 1807 when a bill that abolished the evil practice became law. His work was not done, however. It wasn’t until 1833, a month after he died, that an Emancipation Bill was passed that freed all slaves under British rule. During his life he also helped to found numerous charitable organizations, mission societies, and Bible foundations. He used his power and position to help enact laws that represented the Christian ideals he believed should govern society.
slave trade
Livingstone, David
David Livingstone (1813-1873) was a renowned missionary and explorer. He grew up in Glasgow, Scotland in a poor family. He studied on his own and was able to enter the University of Glasgow in 1830 where he earned degrees in theology and medicine. His desire was to become a missionary to China; however, due to the dangerous conditions in that country at the time, the London Missionary Society sent him to Africa in 1840. He began at the missionary station of Robert Moffat in South Africa, whose daughter he later married, and began pushing steadily northward, building stations along the way. Believing that exploration and missions went hand in hand, he became a renowned explorer, discovering Lake N’gami in 1849 and Victoria Falls in 1853. He sent his family home to England and continued his trek deeper into uncharted territory, traveling nearly 1,400 miles on foot and by boat and preaching the Gospel along the way. He went to England in 1856 where he was hailed as a national hero. When he returned to Africa a year later he had resigned from the Mission Society and worked directly for the British government. His goals were national, ethical, and spiritual: to find the source of the Nile, to end the slave trade, and to share the message of Christ. He was lost for a time from the world, which led to a search in 1870 by journalist Henry Stanley, whose line upon discovering him “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” has become famous. He died three years later, found on his knees in the position of prayer by his native guides. He opened the African frontier to missions and his diligent efforts to end the slave trade were largely successful.