Three Royal British Slave Trade Acts.

GEORGE III, King and King George IV.

$750.00

Item Number: 92483

London: Printed by George Eyre and Andrew Strahan, 1799-1824.

Rare collection of three British Acts related to the regulation and abolition of the British slave trade including: An Act for better regulating the Manner of carrying Slaves, in British Vessels, from the Coast of Africa [12th July 1799]; An Act for regulating…the shipping and carrying of Slaves in British Vessels from the Coast of Africa [28th June 1798]; and An Act to Amend and consolidate the Laws relating to the Abolition of the Slave Trade [24th June 1824]. Quarto, decorative royal emblematic headpieces, schedules of muster roles and seizures. Accompanied by a Copy of an Act Passed in 1817 by the Legislature of Antigua For Restricting the Exportation of Slaves to that Island (Henry Goulburn, 1821) and Copies or Extracts of Correspondence relating to an Expedition to be sent to the River Niger (Vernon Smith, 1840); both ordered by the House of Commons. In near fine condition. An exceptional piece of history.

The anti-slavery movement to abolish the slave trade became popular among the British public following barrister Lord Mansfield's judgement in the Somersett's Case which held that slavery was unsupported by the common law in England and Wales. In 1807, Parliament passed the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which outlawed the slave trade, but not slavery itself. Over two decades later, in 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed which made the purchase or ownership of slaves illegal within the British Empire and provided monetary compensation for previous slave owners.