Book Review: Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery

Have you ever encountered a piece of history and were astonished that it wasn’t covered in your schooling? That recently happened to me when I began learning about William Wilberforce. His role, while mainly in England, was still so influential to the world’s progress towards the abolition of slavery and the slave trade, that it doesn’t make sense that he is not more well-known.

Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery by Eric Metaxes, tells the story of William Wilberforce–from his early days as a child in Hull, England, to his many years in Parliament, and ultimately to his death.

While I am not going to go into the specific details of his life, I will cover the main topic of the book: his effort to end slavery in the British Empire and, ultimately, beyond. This was an issue that he was incredibly devoted to, and spent his political career aiming to accomplish this. It truly took the length of his career and beyond to accomplish it. But why?

When we think of England in the 1800, many tend to think of royal images, of refined men and women on large estates. But the reality is that there were severe brutalities that occurred daily, including public hangings, the burning of bodies, and public dissections of criminal’s bodies. And these things happened in front of a crowd that was all too eager to see it and cheer it on.

Wilberforce believed that the lack of “manners” was a contributing factor to these atrocities as well as to slavery. He saw that, while the nation had an official religion, many, even in the clergy, were unaware or uninterested in the actual beliefs of said religion, which in turn created a callousness that allowed for these various rough circumstances.

The circumstances of Wilberforce's efforts remind me deeply of the fight to end abortion. Abolition was a wildly unpopular opinion in Parliament and within the Empire.

Slavery was a business that made others rich on the backs of unwilling participants–human beings stolen from their homes and forced into hard labor. Abortion, too, is a business that makes others rich at the cost of incredibly unwilling and completely innocent participants–human beings who’s entire lives are stolen from them while they are discarded without a second thought.

People today like to say that if they lived when slavery was still legal, that they would be staunchly against it and support the end of it. But when you read a book about an abolitionist, you realize that most people who say that, don’t really know what they are committing to.

Wilberforce was called names, rumors were spread about him and his family, and threats were made against his life.. He was told to give up, to consider the poor of his homeland instead of those in the West Indies, to consider the ramifications of what would happen to the slaves if they were given their freedom–how would the system support them?

If this doesn’t sound familiar, then you must not be familiar with the pro-life movement. Pro-life activities are often called names, with rumors spread about them, and threat after threat thrown at them. They are told to stop fighting for something that no one wants, to consider the mother’s life (although they often say “woman” instead to deflect from the fact that there is a child’s life at stake) or the children already in foster care or in poverty, to consider the ramifications on the system of an influx of “unwanted children”--how would the system support them?

Wilberforce didn’t let these excuses stop him or his fight. He continued to write bills, petition other leaders, and fight the good fight. Inspired deeply by his faith, he understood that ending slavery was a fight that he was called to and would not let setbacks discourage him.

Three days before Wilberforce’s death, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed (32 years before it happened in the US, mind you!), and because of his work towards the ending of slavery, and the impact he made on manners in the country, he was given the honor to have his final resting place to be at Westminster Abbey.

A true fighter for the rights of the least of these, Wilberforce’s life stands as an inspiration to those fighting for the millions of pre-born lives that are ended far too soon.

While Metaxas doesn’t make this connection, I as a reader and advocate for life saw the similarities over and over. If you are interested in history and enjoy a good biography, this may be a good choice for you.

Metaxas keeps the reader engaged through his wit by occasionally offering his own opinions. He writes in such a way that gives you enough context into the subject's time period to begin to understand motivations and circumstances. It is clear that the topic is well-researched and that the writer was not only interested in his topic, but that he would really like the reader to be too.

My understanding is that this book is also a movie–I will be looking into that, and am looking forward to watching!

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