Wilberforce Biography
- KEVIN BELMONTE
Perhaps the most telling description ever written of evangelical reformer William Wilberforce comes from writer and philosopher Sir James Mackintosh. "I never saw anyone," Mackintosh wrote in 1830, "who touched life at so many points."
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William
Wilberforce (1759-1833) |
Fitting
words indeed for the man about whom it was also said: "No Englishman has ever
done more to evoke the conscience of the British people and to elevate and ennoble
British life."
These days, William Wilberforce (1759-1833) is a forgotten
man for most Americans. But there are many reasons why he deserves to be remembered.
Perhaps the most important is that Americans today, as in Wilberforce's day, are
crying out for moral leadership.
If we desire principled leaders who
inspire trust, Wilberforce's legacy is a potent antidote to the lack of public
integrity that seems to surround us today.
When Lord Melville, Wilberforce's
friend and colleague, was accused of condoning the misappropriation of funds in
1805, Wilberforce voted for his friend's impeachment because he felt principle
demanded it. Many in Parliament insisted the crime was minor and would greatly
disrupt the British war effort against Napoleon's France, since Melville was the
First Lord of the Admiralty.
"We are now on trial before the moral sense
of England," Wilberforce said, explaining his vote. "And if we shrink from it
we will deeply regret our conduct later."
Melville was impeached by one
vote and resigned his office. Wilberforce was pilloried in the press as a political
opportunist. But integrity paid off. Historians agree that Melville's successor,
Lord Barham, was instrumental in engineering Admiral Nelson's great victory at
Trafalgar, a decisive turning point which set the stage for Napoleon's eventual
defeat.
Wilberforce was a great leader because, based on personal principles,
he was willing to stand against public opinion and party expectations. He was
committed to seeing justice served, even when it was personally inconvenient.
Between 1787 and 1807 Wilberforce campaigned tirelessly for a legislated
end to the British slave trade, a part of the economy financially analogous to
our defense industry today. He introduced the measure again and again, and repeatedly
his "perennial resolution" was defeated by moneyed interests that supported political
leaders.
But in 1807, the vote went in his favor 287 to 16, an event
historian G. M. Trevelyan called "one of the turning events in the history of
the world."
In later decades, Abraham Lincoln remembered Wilberforce,
saying he recalled the man who ended the slave trade, but could not name one man
who tried to keep it alive.
The vote to abolish the British slave trade
led eventually to the abolition of slavery itself throughout Britain's colonies,
something we in the United States had to fight a costly and bloody war over.
One of the secrets of Wilberforce's success was his capacity for bridge building.
During his career, he often joined with philosophical opponents in pursuit of
common goals. Abolition was one such instance; his prison reform work with the
Utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham was another. Wilberforce and Bentham subscribed
to very different worldviews, but to Wilberforce this did not preclude the possibility
of collaboration. "Measures, not men," was one of his favorite sayings. Bentham
deeply respected Wilberforce for this and dedicated an early draft of his famous
Essay on the Poor Laws to Wilberforce.
This person-centered view
was not only talk. Like many leaders today, Wilberforce was wealthy. He gave freely,
lowering his tenants' rent, providing for the poor, and giving away a large percentage
of his annual income.
This service, done consistently and without fanfare,
gave force to his words and power to his ideas. There was no grandstanding or
demagoguery, blaming poverty on an opponent's economic plan. There was no appeal
to class envy.
Wilberforce
took his responsibility to promote goodness personally, writing in his widely
acclaimed book A Practical View of Christianity, "It is the true duty of
every man to promote the happiness of his fellow creatures to the utmost of his
power." At the heart of Wilberforce's leadership ability was his faith. He believed
that all were equal in God's sight, citing Acts 17:26, "God hath made of one blood
all nations of men." This moved Wilberforce to serve individuals with whom he
had little or nothing in common, though they could offer nothing but thanks in
return.
Wilberforce's contemporaries took note of this. When he died,
politicians from both houses of Parliament and from all parties petitioned that
he be buried in Westminster Abbey, a rare honor for a commoner. The petition was
granted. Memorials were planned. Testimonials were given. The nation genuinely
felt his loss. Imagining this happening today in the United States. It is possible.
Wilberforce's day was much like our own. England, then the world's superpower,
was struggling with divisive social issues. Public confidence in its system of
laws was low, and political scandal was not uncommon. The history of England shows
that one man—William Wilberforce—was largely responsible for turning
the social tide in a positive direction. This is the power of principled politics.
We should remember the things that make for quality candidates. Is the candidate
a truth-teller even when it's personally inconvenient? Does he or she have firm
principles that will hold up under pressure? Can they honor with whom those they
disagree? Do their words and their actions match up?
In his day, Wilberforce
heard the cry for a good leader. He responded.
If we cry out for good
leaders, the right persons will be stirred to action. If we focus on the right,
good, and true, stipulating that prospective candidates do the same, we will become
a better people because we have better leaders. The legacy of William Wilberforce
shows that this is possible.
This is Meaghen Gonzalez, Editor of CERC. I hope you appreciated this piece. We curate these articles especially for believers like you.
Please show your appreciation by making a $3 donation. CERC is entirely reader supported.
Acknowledgement
Kevin Belmonte. "Wilberforce Biography." Wilberforce Forum (September, 2003).
Reprinted with permission of the Wilberforce Forum.
The Author
Kevin Belmonte is a Wilberforce fellow and director of the William Wilberforce Project at Gordon College. His latest book is called Hero for Humanity: A Biography of William Wilberforce.
Copyright © 2003 The Wilberforce Forum
