Description

Admin History:

William Wilberforce, philanthropist and political activist, was born in High Street, Hull, in 1759. He served as MP for Hull 1780 to 1784 and in 1785 went through an evangelical conversion. His religious associates in London became known as the Clapham Sect and he devoted his life to good causes. Although he is chiefly remembered for his part in the abolition of slavery in Britain in 1807 he was also involved in the Society for Bettering the Condition and Increasing the Comforts of the Poor and in the British and Foreign Bible Society.

He suffered ill health for the last twenty years of his life. William Wilberforce died on the 29 July 1833 and his death was marked with a state funeral at Westminster Abbey where he was buried next to William Pitt. In Hull, a subscription was raised to build a monument. The foundation stone was laid on 1st August 1834 with flags flying and bells ringing in celebration. The statue of Wilberforce at the top of the monument was added the following year.

Description:

A letter from William Wilberforce to his friend Rev Thomas Gisborne