Showing results for "David Smith" in Historical

Kidnapped as a child into slavery, Equiano spent the rest of his life fighting for his freedom. After years of slavery, working on ships that carried him across empire and into battle during the Seven Years War, he eventually managed to purchase his own freedom, and went on to become a leading figure in the early abolition movement. Published to coincide with the first attempt to abolish the slave trade in 1789, Equiano's remarkable autobiography became a sensation and turned its author into the most famous Black person in Georgian Britain.

Joseph Smith Jr. (1805–1844) was one of the most successful and controversial religious leaders of nineteenth-century America, publishing the Book of Mormon and starting what would become the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He built temples, founded a city-state in Illinois, ran for president, and married more than thirty women. This self-made prophet thrilled his followers with his grand vision of peace and unity, but his increasingly grandiose plans tested and sometimes shattered their faith.