Full Name
Robert Wedderburn (born 1762)[1]
Date of Birth
1762[1]
Date of Death
1835/1836[1]
Place of Birth
Spouse’s Name
- Not available
Children’s Names
- Not available
Known Affiliates Names
Affiliated Organizations’ Names
- Royal Navy (served)[2]
- Unitarian preacher (licensed)[2]
Legacy
Robert Wedderburn was a British-Jamaican radical and abolitionist of multiracial descent active in early 19th-century London[1]. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, he was the illegitimate son of James Wedderburn Colvile, a Scottish sugar planter, and an African-born slave, Rosanna[2]. Wedderburn served in the Royal Navy before traveling to Britain in 1778[2]. He worked as a tailor and was involved in petty thieving before being licensed as a Unitarian preacher in 1813[2]. Wedderburn became increasingly involved in radical politics and was a vocal critic of the slave trade and the culture of Jamaican slavery[2]. In 1824, he published “The Horrors of Slavery,” a stinging attack on his biological father and the culture of Jamaican slavery, which was widely circulated by the abolitionist cause[2]. His legacy as a political firebrand and key figure in Britain’s history of race, religion, and revolution continues to be recognized[3][5].
Citations: [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Wedderburn_(radical) [2] https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/2146643591 [3] https://isj.org.uk/robert-wedderburn-race-religion-and-revolution/ [4] https://blackplaqueproject.com/biography/robert-wedderburn/ [5] https://museumofcolour.org.uk/my-words/robert-wedderburn/