Rotterdam Ladies Anti-Slavery Committee

In 1842, something unusual happened in Rotterdam. A group of 129 women directly addressed King William II with a request to abolish slavery. This was a breakthrough, as women had little influence at the time.

They called themselves the Ladies Antislavery Committee, connected to the English abolitionist movement. In Rotterdam, with many British merchants and Quakers, abolition ideas were already known. Quakers emphasized equality and nonviolence and actively fought slavery. The women's letter condemned slavery as a system reducing people to ‘bare tools’ and highlighted the injustice against especially women.

Willem Cornelis Mees, a lawyer and teacher, revived the anti-slavery movement in 1840 and joined the Rotterdam Committee Against Slavery. In 1842, over 125,000 people signed a petition to the king.

William II promised change ‘in the future,’ a vague commitment. Still, pressure grew. In 1862, it was decided that slavery in the Dutch colonies would be abolished on July 1, 1863.

The action of the Ladies Antislavery Committee was also a first step for women to be heard. Their courage did not go unnoticed.