Abolition milestones

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1772: The Somersett Case
A judge, Lord Mansfield, ruled that slavery was illegal in England
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1788: The Dolben Act
The Dolben Act limited the number of enslaved people a ship could carry
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1789-1807: Wilberforce presented a bill for slave trade abolition
Wilberforce made his first speech against slavery in Parliament in 1789. Between 1791 and 1807 he presented a bill for the abolition of the slave trade every year
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1806: Bill bans British ships from carrying enslaved people
James Stephen suggested a different bill banning British ships from carrying enslaved people to French colonies. This stopped two-thirds of the slave trade and made it unviable
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1807: Abolition of the slave trade (British Parliament)
The British Parliament abolished the slave trade
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1815: The Congress of Vienna abolished the slave trade
The Congress of Vienna, making peace at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, agreed to abolish the slave trade
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1833: Abolition of the slave trade (British Empire)
The British Parliament abolished slavery in the British Empire

The triangular slave tradeAbolition milestones