William Wilberforce - A Biography
William Wilberforce's name will forever be associated with the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. Publishing to coincide with the bicentenary of the Anti-Slave Act in 2007, this lively biography includes primary documentation about the experience of slaves and slave traders.
Drawing on his experience as a journalist and a church historian, Stephen Tomkins' book traces Wilberforce's early years as the son of a wealthy merchant family in Hull and his dissolute life in Cambridge. Following his work as an MP under Pitt and his evangelical conversion, he became a campaigner for public morality and led the parliamentary movement for the abolition of slavery. The book covers the formation of the "Clapham Sect' and the passing of the Anti-Slave trade act, up to Wilberforce's death just 3 days after the final reading of the Emancipation Bill.
The author: Stephen Tomkins has a PhD in Church History from the London School of Theology and is the author of several books on the history of Christianity. He is a journalist, a contributing editor to the Ship of Fools website, and also writes frequently for the BBC News website.
You may also be interested in: The Wilberforce Connection.