William Wilberforce

William Wilberforce (24 August 1759 – 29 July 1833) was a member of the British Parliament (1780-1825), philanthropist, and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade.

A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he became an Evangelical Christian in 1785, resulting in major changes to his lifestyle and a lifelong concern for reform. In 1787, he came into contact with a group who persuaded him to take on the cause of abolition, and he soon became one of Britain's leading abolitionists. He headed the parliamentary campaign against the British slave trade for twenty years until the passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807.

Wilberforce was convinced of the importance of religion, morality and education. He championed causes and campaigns such as the Society for the Suppression of Vice, British missionary work in India, the creation of a free colony in Sierra Leone, the foundation of the Church Mission Society, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. His underlying conservatism led him to support politically and socially controversial legislation, and resulted in criticism that he was ignoring injustices at home while campaigning for the enslaved abroad.

In later years, Wilberforce supported the campaign for the complete abolition of slavery, and continued his involvement after 1826, when he resigned from Parliament because of his failing health. That campaign led to the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, which abolished slavery in most of the British Empire; Wilberforce died just three days after hearing that the passage of the Act through Parliament was assured.

William Wilberforce in The Two Georges
William Wilberforce was a hero to many in the North American Union, whose sizable Negro population was freed from slavery in 1834, due in part to his legislation. One of the Great Lakes provinces of the Union was named Wilberforce in his honour.

Literary comment
This is a bit speculative, based on the juxtaposition of his name on the frontispiece map (though the province is simply called "Huron Peninsula" in the novel itself) with the novel's frequent references to the effects of abolition on NAU society.