William Wilberforce

Peter Ackroyd
— in TimesOnline
"Stephen Tomkins's William Wilberforce: A Biography is succinct and economical but conveys a very powerful impression of its subject."

Mark A. Noll
— University of Notre Dame
"The 200th anniversary of Parliament's ban of the slave trade has resulted in a burst of hagiographic enthusiasm for William Wilberforce. Stephen Tomkins's fine book offers something quite different. While genuinely appreciative of this genuinely admirable figure, Tomkins presents a realistic, probing, and full-orbed portrait. It is good to have available such a solid historical account of such an important historical figure."

Harry S. Stout
— Yale University
"In this thoroughly researched and sensitively written biography of William Wilberforce, Stephen Tomkins lays bare both the man and the institution he devoted his life to abolish. Drawing extensively on eyewitness testimonies, Tomkins confronts readers with the brutality of the slave trade as he depicts Wilberforce's extraordinary, religiously grounded efforts to eradicate it. The book takes into account current cultural concerns without succumbing to anachronistic revisionism. A must-read in this 200th anniversary year of British abolition."