What was the abolitionist movement?
Quick answer
The abolitionist movement, or abolitionism, was the campaign to end slavery and the slave trade, especially strong in Britain and the United States in the late 1700s and 1800s. Britain abolished slavery in most of its colonies in 1833, and the US in 1865.
Key figures
| Person | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Frederick Douglass | Escaped slavery; powerful speaker, writer and newspaper editor |
| Harriet Tubman | Escaped slavery and led about 70 people to freedom on the Underground Railroad |
| William Lloyd Garrison | Published The Liberator from 1831 |
| Sojourner Truth | Formerly enslaved preacher who spoke for abolition and women’s rights |
| William Wilberforce | Led the campaign in the British Parliament |
| Olaudah Equiano | His 1789 autobiography described the horrors of the slave trade |
Enslaved people themselves resisted through escapes and revolts, which shaped the movement. The Haitian Revolution created a free nation in 1804; see which two countries share Hispaniola.
The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad wasn’t a railroad but a secret network of routes and safe houses. Escaping people traveled from the southern US to free states and Canada, helped by “conductors.” Code words borrowed from railways, such as “stations” and “passengers,” helped keep it secret.
Milestones in abolition
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1807 | Britain and the US ban the Atlantic slave trade (the US law took effect in 1808) |
| 1833 | Britain’s Slavery Abolition Act |
| 1852 | Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe turns many Northerners against slavery |
| 1863 | Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation |
| 1865 | The 13th Amendment abolishes slavery in the US |
| 1888 | Brazil, the last country in the Americas to abolish slavery |
The movement’s legacy
Many abolitionists, especially women, went on to campaign for women’s suffrage; see which country first gave women the vote. The struggle for equal rights continued into the 20th century; see who signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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