Men, women and children, crammed into cramped quarters and deprived of basic rights such as water, breathable air and food. The smell is horrendous and the environment intolerable. These were the conditions aboard a slave ship and the life of a slave during the passage from their home to the slave port. In 1787, William Wilberforce undertook the seemingly hopeless attempt to abolish this trade. It is said that a great man becomes a leader when the need arises. William Wilberforce was a great man who did just that and who achieved the almost impossible through his undying determination to campaign and pass anti-slave laws, passing the Slave Trade Act in 1806 and fighting for the total emancipation of slaves in the British Empire. The slave trade issue had very few public supporters, many supporters remained silent to avoid public annoyance. The original abolitionists had campaigned across Britain; however, they had little support and no political power. In 1784 a member of Parliament, named William Wilberforce, became an evangelical Christian. His decision led him to become extremely interested in the abolition of slavery. After being approached by abolitionists, Wilberforce decided to accept the position of parliamentary leader of the abolitionist movement. William Wilberforce's decision in 1787 to pursue the abolition of the slave trade proved to be a long, hard 46 years that ultimately cost him his life. In 1788, Wilberforce introduced a bill to regulate conditions aboard slave ships. This bill was initially rejected, but was eventually passed in the House of Lords by a vote of 56 to 5. This initial success was crucial and for this reason, Wilberforce believed that the abolition of slavery was... halfway through paper... ....and France itself. It also removed the protection of the neutral American flag. French vessels flying the American flag would be subject to search and seizure. On the surface, however, the bill was anti-French; British slave ships also flew the American flag, depriving the British of their protection as well. Wilberforce did not introduce the bill, although he was its driving force, in order to avoid suspicion about the true effect of the bill. He and other abolitionists maintained a self-imposed silence until the bill passed. This tactic was successful, and on 23 May 1806 the bill received royal assent, marking the beginning of the end of the slave trade. The end of the slave trade in the British Empire allowed many parliamentarians to move to the antislavery position. They no longer had the excuse of commercial wealth to demonstrate their political position.