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William Wilberforce
The 29th Pure Gold Classic, William Wilberforce presents the very best of this great man’s life and work. It includes his Practical View of Christianity, historic papers, and a wonderful biography of the man who became the conscience of the world and helped bring an end to the practice of slavery in the civilized world.
William Wilberforce, the son of a wealthy merchant, was born in Hull in 1759. William’s father died when he was young, and for a time William was brought up by an uncle and aunt. William came under the influence of his aunt, who was a strong supporter of John Wesley and the Methodist movement. Disturbed by these developments, Mrs. Wilberforce brought her son back to the family home.
In 1784 Wilberforce converted to Evangelical Christianity. He joined the Clapham Set, a group of evangelical members of the Anglican Church, centered around John Venn, rector of Clapham Church in London. As a result of this conversion, Wilberforce became interested in social reform and was eventually approached by Lady Middleton and was asked to use his power as an MP to bring an end to the slave trade.
As a member of the evangelical movement, Wilberforce was sympathetic to Mrs. Middleton’s request. In his letter of reply, Wilberforce “I feel the great importance of the subject and I think myself unequal to the task allotted to me.” Despite these doubts, Wilberforce agreed to Mrs. Middleton’s request, but soon afterwards, he became very ill and it was not until 12th May, 1789, that he made his first speech against the slave trade.
William Wilberforce, the son of a wealthy merchant, was born in Hull in 1759. William’s father died when he was young, and for a time William was brought up by an uncle and aunt. William came under the influence of his aunt, who was a strong supporter of John Wesley and the Methodist movement. Disturbed by these developments, Mrs. Wilberforce brought her son back to the family home.
In 1784 Wilberforce converted to Evangelical Christianity. He joined the Clapham Set, a group of evangelical members of the Anglican Church, centered around John Venn, rector of Clapham Church in London. As a result of this conversion, Wilberforce became interested in social reform and was eventually approached by Lady Middleton and was asked to use his power as an MP to bring an end to the slave trade.
As a member of the evangelical movement, Wilberforce was sympathetic to Mrs. Middleton’s request. In his letter of reply, Wilberforce “I feel the great importance of the subject and I think myself unequal to the task allotted to me.” Despite these doubts, Wilberforce agreed to Mrs. Middleton’s request, but soon afterwards, he became very ill and it was not until 12th May, 1789, that he made his first speech against the slave trade.
190 pages, Paperback
First published January 30, 2007
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About the author
William Wilberforce
153 books91 followersWilliam Wilberforce was an MP, a committed Christian and a vanguard in the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. He campaigned all his life, despite opposition and ill health and championed reform in many areas of society. He was founder of the Church Mission Society and what would later come to be known as the RSPCA.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 23, 2013
William Wilberforce was, to say it mildly, an inspiring man. His life and influence are profoundly impacting.
This book, however, is a very poor outline of his life. It contains numerous repetitions (to the point where lengthy quotes are used again in the following paragraph) and jumps all over the place, leaving the reader without a clear timeline of the events that occurred.
Wilberforce is certainly worth reading about, but this particular edition is definitely miss-able.
This book, however, is a very poor outline of his life. It contains numerous repetitions (to the point where lengthy quotes are used again in the following paragraph) and jumps all over the place, leaving the reader without a clear timeline of the events that occurred.
Wilberforce is certainly worth reading about, but this particular edition is definitely miss-able.
August 1, 2023
3 stars only because of the poor presentation of materials.
This book is a collection of Wilberforce’s own writings as well as his contemporaries writing about him. The selections chosen are excellent and wonderfully make the case of Wilberforce’s preeminent place in history. I’m grateful to have ease of access to such a wide array of texts including excerpts from “A Practical View of Christianity,” samplings of William Cowper’s poems pertaining to Wilberforce and the African Slave Trade, and even newspaper accounts of Wilberforce’s funeral.
Where this book falls short is 1) in the numerous editorial misses. As other commenters have noted some sentences/paragraphs accidentally are duplicated and inserted oddly making for difficult reading. And there are odd spelling mistakes and typographical errors. 2) Though I am grateful for the collection of various texts, there is no “through line” to the selection. There is no theme to what is chosen, nor is there added commentary providing a connecting narrative or even historical context as to who or why that text was written. Such additions could have greatly improved this book.
As it stands, I still am thankful for the new insights I was able to gather about Wilberforce and his remarkable life.
This book is a collection of Wilberforce’s own writings as well as his contemporaries writing about him. The selections chosen are excellent and wonderfully make the case of Wilberforce’s preeminent place in history. I’m grateful to have ease of access to such a wide array of texts including excerpts from “A Practical View of Christianity,” samplings of William Cowper’s poems pertaining to Wilberforce and the African Slave Trade, and even newspaper accounts of Wilberforce’s funeral.
Where this book falls short is 1) in the numerous editorial misses. As other commenters have noted some sentences/paragraphs accidentally are duplicated and inserted oddly making for difficult reading. And there are odd spelling mistakes and typographical errors. 2) Though I am grateful for the collection of various texts, there is no “through line” to the selection. There is no theme to what is chosen, nor is there added commentary providing a connecting narrative or even historical context as to who or why that text was written. Such additions could have greatly improved this book.
As it stands, I still am thankful for the new insights I was able to gather about Wilberforce and his remarkable life.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews