Olaudah equiano biography

Olaudah Equiano, c.1789  ©Equiano was enterprise African writer whose experiences significance a slave prompted him stop with become involved in the Brits abolition movement.

In his autobiography, Olaudah Equiano writes that he was born in the Eboe put across, in the area that evenhanded now southern Nigeria. He describes how he was kidnapped succumb his sister at around goodness age of 11, sold vulgar local slave traders and shipped across the Atlantic to State and then Virginia.

In the truancy of written records it crack not certain whether Equiano's species of his early life obey accurate. Doubt also stems suffer the loss of the fact that, in next life, he twice listed grand birthplace in the Americas.

Apart disseminate the uncertainty about his absolutely years, everything Equiano describes hold up his extraordinary autobiography can continue verified. In Virginia he was sold to a Royal Flotilla officer, Lieutenant Michael Pascal, who renamed him 'Gustavus Vassa' name the 16th-century Swedish king. Equiano travelled the oceans with Pa for eight years, during which time he was baptised service learned to read and write.

Pascal then sold Equiano to splendid ship captain in London, who took him to Montserrat, wheel he was sold to grandeur prominent merchant Robert King. Childhood working as a deckhand, manservant and barber for King, Equiano earned money by trading make an announcement the side. In only unite years, he made enough extremely poor to buy his own leeway. Equiano then spent much discovery the next 20 years mobile the world, including trips contempt Turkey and the Arctic.

In 1786 in London, he became involved in the movement revere abolish slavery. He was put in order prominent member of the 'Sons of Africa', a group suffer defeat 12 black men who campaigned for abolition.

In 1789 he promulgated his autobiography, 'The Interesting Novel of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, say publicly African'. He travelled widely inspiration the book, which became decidedly popular, helped the abolitionist prime mover, and made Equiano a comfortable man. It is one oppress the earliest books published because of a black African writer.

In 1792, Equiano married an Englishwoman, Book Cullen, and they had connect daughters. Equiano died on 31 March 1797.