Olaudah Equiano born in 1745 was a writer and abolitionist who originally was from the Ibo region of Benin Kingdom in Nigeria according to his memoir. He was captured as a child and sold as a slave, taken to the Caribbean, and then sold to a Royal Navy officer.
He eventually purchased
his freedom in 1766 and was known as Gustavus Vassa for most of his life.
He became a member of
the Sons of Africa, an abolitionist group, who were Africans living in Britain
fighting for an end to slavery.
His place of birth has
been one of controversy with a Literary Scholar claiming he could have been in
colonial South Carolina; which has been disputed by other scholars though.
Early Life and Enslavement
According to his
autobiography, he was born in Essaka, Eboe, in the Kingdom of Benin. He was
kidnapped at the age of seven alongside his sister, and sold to different slave
traders. They however met again but were finally separated again forever. He
was shipped through the Atlantic Ocean to Barbados and later taken to the
Colony of Virginia for sale.
A Naval officer in the
Royal Navy Michael Henry Pascal bought him and renamed him Gustavus Vassa. He
had earlier been named Michael, and at another time Jacob onboard a slave ship.
His master took him
along with him back to England and had him as a valet during the Anglo-French
war which lasted from 1756 to 1763.
He was sent to learn to
read and write by his master. Olaudah was highly favored by Henry and his
Cousins who stood as his godparents when he converted to Christianity and was
baptized on February 9, 1759, at age 14.
He was later sold to
Captain James Doran in December 1762, taken to the Caribbean again, and was
bought by Robert King an American Quaker merchant from Philadelphia.
Olaudah pays for his freedom
At the age of 20, his
new master promised to set him free if he could purchase his freedom for 40
pounds. With this promise as motivation, he worked with Robert on his shipping (voyages)
expeditions and in his store.
His new master also
taught him how to read and write more fluently. He allowed Equiano to engage in
his private trading as well as on behalf of his master.
Equiano sold fruits, and
glass tumblers and by 1766 bought his freedom from Robert but on Roberts's
request remained with him as a partner.
He later left the
Caribbean and returned to England in 1768. Equiano continued working at sea and
on one of his trips in 1773, he met Dr. Charles Irving. Dr. Charles later
recruited him to work on a project on the “Mosquito Coast” in Central America;
Charles had earlier developed a process to distill seawater making a fortune
from it.
In this project,
Equiano was responsible for selecting slaves and managing them as laborers on a
sugar plantation. Though the plantation failed Equiano and Charles had a good
relationship that lasted for more than ten years until 1776 when Equiano left
the Mosquito Coast and arrived in England on January 7, 1777.
Pioneer of the abolitionist cause
In the 1780s he joined
the movement for the abolition of slavery known as the abolitionist movement.
With urging and financial support from fellow abolitionists, he embarked on the
project of writing his life story. His book went through nine editions in his
lifetime (even when he was still alive). Written in 1789, his book is one of
the first books to be written by an African. His book was widely read in
England and became a best seller by 1792 and was translated and published in
Germany, Holland, the United States, and Russia.
According to his
narrative, he did not experience what the majority of slaves passed through,
but his book fueled the growth of opposition to slavery in Great Britain,
Europe, and the United States.
He lectured in numerous
cities against the slave trade and traveled throughout England, Scotland, and
Ireland promoting his book.
Equiano also visited
Sierra Leone and worked to improve the social, economic, and educational status
of Africans. His work in Sierra Leone involved settling freed slaves; including
slaves that fought the American-Great Britain war on the side of Great Britain.
He was appointed on November 1786 “Commissary of Provisions and Stores for the
Black Poor going to Sierra Leone.” They were settled in Freetown, a new British
colony in present-day Sierra Leone. He was however dismissed for protesting
against financial mismanagement and returned to England.
Recognition
Olaudah Equiano was a
public figure who spoke openly about slavery as well as a spokesman for the
black community and was a leading member of the Sons of Africa; a group of
freed Africans who had settled in London and fought for the abolition of
slavery.
The controversy
surrounding his birthplace was raised by Vincent Carretta a professor of English
who asserted that from his baptismal records and other documents that there was
the possibility he was born in South Carolina rather than Africa.
Historians have however
spoken in favor of Equiano, arguing that if the events narrated in his book
have factual pieces of evidence to prove them; his place of birth should not be
in doubt.
His autobiography has
been adjudged the most valued account of a slave’s life and the horrible
experience from slavery to freedom. In
this book, “The Interesting Narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano” (1789) he
portrayed the horrors of slavery using his experience as an example.
Olaudah married an
English woman and had two daughters from her. He used Gustavus Vassa all his
life but only used his name Equiano in his autobiography. He died in March 1797
In his will, he willed
half his fortune to the Sierra Leone Company in the event his surviving death
died before the age of 21. He is valued and regarded as a pioneer in asserting
“the dignity of African life in the white society of his time.”