WILLIAM WILBERFORCE
William Wilberforce, (born Aug. 24, 1759, Hull, Yorkshire, Eng.—died July 29, 1833, London), British politician and philanthropist who from 1787 was prominent in the struggle to abolish the slave trade and then to abolish slavery itself in British overseas possessions.
In 1780, Wilberforce became a member of parliament for Hull, later representing Yorkshire. His dissolute lifestyle changed completely when he became an evangelical Christian. In 1787 Wilberforce helped to found a society for the “reformation of manners” called the Proclamation Society (to suppress the publication of obscenity) and the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade—the latter more commonly called the Anti-Slavery Society. He and his associates were first called the Saints and afterward (from 1797) the Clapham Sect, of which Wilberforce was the acknowledged leader.
In the House of Commons, Wilberforce was an eloquent and indefatigable sponsor of antislavery legislation. In 1789 he introduced 12 resolutions against the slave trade and gave the most eloquent speeches ever delivered in the Commons. In 1791 he again brought a motion to the House of Commons to abolish the slave trade, but it was defeated 163 to 88. In 1792 Wilberforce, buttressed by the support of hundreds of thousands of British subjects who had signed petitions favoring the abolition of the slave trade, put forward another motion.
For the next 15 years, Wilberforce was able to achieve little progress toward ending the slave trade. In 1807, however, he finally achieved success: on Feb. 23, 1807, a bill to abolish the slave trade in the British West Indies was carried in the Commons 283 to 16, and it became law on March 25.
The 1807 statute did not, however, change the legal position of persons enslaved before its enactment, and so, after several years in which Wilberforce was concerned with other issues, he and Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton urged (from 1821) the immediate emancipation of all slaves.
On July 26, 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed by the Commons (it became law the following month); three days later Wilberforce died.
During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Great Britain became the first country to industrialize. Because of this, it was also the first country where the nature of children’s work changed so dramatically that child labor became seen as a social problem and a political issue.
Children of poor and working-class families had worked for centuries before industrialization – helping around the house or assisting in the family’s enterprise when they were able. The practice of putting children to work was first documented in the Medieval era when fathers had their children spin thread for them to weave on the loom. Children performed a variety of tasks that were auxiliary to their parents but critical to the family economy. The family’s household needs determined the family’s supply of labor and “the interdependence of work and residence, of household labor needs, subsidence requirements, and family relationships constituted the ‘family economy'” [Tilly and Scott (1978, 12)].
The case of Martha Appleton in 1859 highlights the terrible working conditions thousands of children across Britain endured every day in the 19th century. As a 13-year-old textile worker in Wigan, Martha was employed as a 'scavenger', picking up loose cotton from beneath machinery. On one particular day, Martha fainted and caught her left hand in an unguarded machine. In the accident, all her fingers were severed. Martha lost her job because she was no longer able to work efficiently.
Changes came in 1833 when the Factory Act was passed. The Act not only created the post of factory inspector but also made it illegal for textile factories to employ children less than 9 years of age. The Act came at a time when reformers like Richard Oastler were publicizing the terrible working conditions of children, comparing the plight of child laborers to that of slaves. The timing was significant: slavery was abolished in the British empire in 1833-4.
Further legislation limiting child labor in factories was introduced in 1844, 1847, 1850, 1853 and 1867. After 1867 no factory or workshop could employ any child under the age of 8, and employees aged between 8 and 13 were to receive at least 10 hours of education per week. But such legislation was not foolproof. Inspectors often found it difficult to discover the exact age of young people employed in factories, and reports showed that factory owners did not always provide the hours set aside by law for education.
Towards the end of the 19th-century attitudes towards children shifted further. The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) was founded in 1889; and earlier, in 1870, the Education Act had brought huge changes. The Act put in place the building blocks for a free and compulsory education system. Gradually, every child in Britain was introduced to schooling. By the late 19th century, children's lives were beginning to be transformed. They were going to school instead of work, and being treated as children instead of 'little adults'. With the protection of the law, many could now avoid the exploitation of their childhood and gain an education.
The term “child labor” generally refers to children who work to produce a good or a service which can be sold for money in the marketplace regardless of whether or not they are paid for their work. A “child” is usually defined as a person who is dependent upon other individuals (parents, relatives, or government officials) for his or her livelihood. The exact ages of “childhood” differ by country and time period.
QUEEN VICTORIA I
Queen Victoria served as monarch of Great Britain and Ireland from 1837, and as Empress of India from 1877, until her death in 1901.
She is the second-longest reigning British monarch after Queen Elizabeth II. Victoria's reign saw great cultural expansion; advances in industry, science, and communications; and the building of railways and the London Underground.
In 1840, Queen Victoria married her cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the son of her mom’s brother. The couple met when Victoria was just 16; their uncle Leopold suggested they marry.
Since Victoria was queen, Albert couldn’t propose to her. So she proposed to him on October 15, 1839.
At first, the British public didn’t warm up to the German prince and he was excluded from holding any official political position. At times their marriage was tempestuous, a clash of wills between two extremely strong personalities.
However, the couple were intensely devoted to each other. Prince Albert became Queen Victoria’s strongest ally, helping her navigate difficult political waters.
After several years of suffering from stomach ailments, Victoria's beloved Prince Albert died of typhoid fever in 1861 at the age of 42. Victoria was devastated, sleeping with a plaster cast of his hand by her side, and went into 25-year seclusion.
Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert had nine children together.
Life in Britain during the 19th century was known as Victorian England because of Queen Victoria’s long reign and the indelible stamp it and her persona placed on the country. Her strict ethics and personality have become synonymous with the era.
Under Queen Victoria's reign, Great Britain experienced unprecedented expansion in industry, building railways, bridges, underground sewers and power distribution networks throughout much of the empire.
There were advances in science (Charles Darwin's theory of evolution) and technology (the telegraph and popular press), with vast numbers of inventions; tremendous wealth and poverty; growth of great cities like Manchester, Leeds, and Birmingham; increased literacy; and great civic works, often funded by industrial philanthropists.
During Queen Victoria’s reign, Britain expanded its imperial reach, doubling in size and encompassing Canada, Australia, India and various possessions in Africa and the South Pacific. The Queen was emblematic of the time: an enthusiastic supporter of the British Empire, which stretched across the globe and earned the adage: “The sun never sets on the British Empire.”
At various points in her reign, Queen Victoria exercised some influence over foreign affairs, expressing her preference, but not pressing beyond the bounds of constitutional propriety. During this time, the British Empire experienced only a few small wars, exerting its authority over foreign possessions.
One of the major factors that helped Britain avoid European entanglements was the marriage of Victoria's children: either directly or by marriage, she was related to the royal houses of nearly every major European power, with the exceptions of France and Spain. Though the English constitutional arrangement denied her powers in foreign affairs, she ruled her family with an iron hand that helped keep Great Britain away from the intrigues of European politics.
Jane Austin (1775-1817)
Jane Austin was a British novelist of the 18thcentury, who is majorly known for her six most famous novels: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, Persuasionand Lady Susan.
These works mainly comment on the landed gentry of Great Britain. The main focus in her narrations usually lies on a strong female character through which Jane Austin explores the possibilities for women of her century to live a self-determined life. Her style of writing is remarkable due to the irony, humour, realism with which she performes her social commentary.
Most of what is known today about her life, was extracted from letters she wrote to her sister and other close family members and friends.
Like many great artists, Jane Austin only received recognition after her death, when her novels were republished as a set in 1833. Since then, her books have enjoyed great popularity and been adapted in numerous films. Her maybe most famous novel, Pride and Prejudice was even filmed as a zombie version with the cunning title ‘Pride and Prejudice and Zombies’.
https://www.biografiasyvidas.com/biografia/a/austen.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Austen#List_of_works
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