Slavery Abolition Act 1833

E2334

Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom British statute

The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 was a landmark British law that ended slavery throughout most of the British Empire, leading to the emancipation of hundreds of thousands of enslaved people, particularly in the Caribbean.

Observed surface forms (2)

Surface form	As subject	As object
Abolition of slavery in the British Empire	0	1
Slavery Abolition Act	0	1

Statements (49)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom → British statute →
apprenticeshipSystemDuration	up to 6 years →
beneficiariesOfCompensation	slave owners →
beneficiariesOfEmancipation	enslaved people in British colonies →
compensationAmount	£20,000,000 →
compensationSource	British government loan →
compensationToSlaveOwners	true →
country	United Kingdom →
effectiveDate	1834-08-01 →
estimatedNumberEmancipated	over 800,000 →
excludedJurisdiction	Sri Lanka → surface form: Ceylon Saint Helena → Territories under the control of the East India Company →
historicalSignificance	ended legal chattel slavery in most British colonies → major milestone in global abolition of slavery →
inspiredMovements	abolitionist movements in other countries →
introducedApprenticeshipSystem	true →
jurisdiction	British West Indies → surface form: British Caribbean colonies British Empire → British North American colonies (except some territories) → Cape Colony → Mauritius →
keySupporter	British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society → Thomas Fowell Buxton → William Wilberforce →
language	English →
legalStatus	repealed in part and superseded by later legislation →
legalSystem	common law →
mainEffect	abolition of slavery in most of the British Empire → legal emancipation of enslaved people in British colonies → prohibition of ownership of slaves in covered territories →
monarchAtEnactment	William IV →
parliament	British Parliament → surface form: Parliament of the United Kingdom
placeOfPassing	City of Westminster → surface form: Westminster
politicalContext	British abolitionist movement → campaigns by anti-slavery societies →
regionWithLargestImpact	British West Indies → Caribbean →
relatedEarlierLegislation	Slave Trade Act 1807 →
relatedLaterLegislation	Slavery Abolition Act 1838 → Slavery Abolition Act 1843 →
royalAssentDate	1833-08-28 →
shortName	Slavery Abolition Act 1833 self-linksurface differs → surface form: Slavery Abolition Act
subjectMatter	colonial law → compensation for property → emancipation → slavery →
yearEnacted	1833 →

Referenced by (16)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Slave Trade Act 1843 → follows → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1838 → follows → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1843 → follows → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1838 → hasPredecessor → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey → knownFor → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

British colonial period in Jamaica → legalChange → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

this entity surface form: Abolition of slavery in the British Empire

Earl Grey → legislativeAchievement → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

William IV → notableEvent → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slave Trade Act 1807 → relatedTo → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slave Trade Act 1824 → relatedTo → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1838 → relatedTo → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1843 → relatedTo → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 → shortName → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 self-linksurface differs →

this entity surface form: Slavery Abolition Act

British West Indies → significantEvent → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

William Wilberforce → supportedAct → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →

Henry Brougham → supportedLegislation → Slavery Abolition Act 1833 →