It was July 26th: England abolished slavery

On July 26, 1833, the British House of Commons passed the Slavery Abolition Act, a landmark law that abolished slavery in almost all of the British Empire. Supported by Prime Minister Charles Grey, this reform brought to an end decades of campaigning by abolitionists, notably William Wilberforce and Thomas Fowell Buxton. The Act was enacted a few weeks later and came into effect on August 1, 1834, paving the way for the emancipation of more than 800,000 people enslaved in the British colonies.

The culmination of a long struggle

Since the late 18th century, activists, religious leaders, and members of parliament have denounced the violence of slavery and the slave trade. After securing the abolition of the slave trade in 1807, William Wilberforce continued his efforts until his dying day to eliminate the institution itself. Slave revolts in the Caribbean, particularly in Jamaica in 1831, further increased the pressure on the British government, which came to understand that the colonial system based on slavery had become politically and morally untenable.

The law, however, stipulated a controversial transition. Some former slaves were subjected to an "apprenticeship" program, intended to prepare them for freedom but which in reality prolonged their forced labor for several years. Faced with criticism, this system was ultimately abandoned in 1838, ahead of the originally planned date.

An abolition with very real limitations

The 1833 text contains another provision that still sparks much debate today: the British state grants 20 million pounds sterling in compensation to slave owners, representing approximately 40% of the United Kingdom's annual budget at the time. However, former slaves receive no compensation for the years they endured.

Despite these limitations, this abolition marked a major turning point in 19th-century history. The British Empire became the first major colonial power to legally abolish slavery in most of its possessions. Its example influenced other states, including France, which definitively abolished slavery in its colonies in 1848, under the impetus of the provisional government of the Second Republic and Victor Schœlcher.