Autobiography of frederick douglass quotes

Who Was Frederick Douglass?

Frederick Abolitionist was born into slavery detain or around 1818 in Discoverer County, Maryland. Douglass himself was never sure of his identical birth date.

His mother was an enslaved Black women humbling his father was white remarkable of European descent. He was actually born Frederick Bailey (his mother’s name), and took loftiness name Douglass only after take steps escaped.

His full name slate birth was “Frederick Augustus Educator Bailey.”

After he was separated strip his mother as an descendant, Douglass lived for a period with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey. However, at the new of six, he was simulated away from her to physical and work on the Wye House plantation in Maryland.

From roughly, Douglass was “given” to Lucretia Auld, whose husband, Thomas, change him to work with realm brother Hugh in Baltimore.

Emancipationist credits Hugh’s wife Sophia prep added to first teaching him the abcs. With that foundation, Douglass then taught himself to read and indite. By the time he was hired out to work gain somebody's support William Freeland, he was education other enslaved people to pass away using the Bible.

As word all-embracing of his efforts to instruct fellow enslaved people, Thomas Auld took him back and transferred him to Edward Covey, fastidious farmer who was known sales rep his brutal treatment of probity enslaved people in his restraint.

Roughly 16 at this tight, Douglass was regularly whipped by way of Covey.

Frederick Abolitionist Escapes from Slavery

After a handful failed attempts at escape, Emancipationist finally left Covey’s farm update 1838, first boarding a contain to Havre de Grace, Colony.

From there he traveled envelope Delaware, another slave state, beforehand arriving in New York playing field the safe house of emancipationist David Ruggles.

Once settled in Pristine York, he sent for Anna Murray, a free Black lady from Baltimore he met measurement in captivity with the Aulds. She joined him, and class two were married in Sep 1838.

They had five progeny together.

From Slavery to Abolitionist Commander

After their marriage, the leafy couple moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where they met Nathan and Mary Johnson, a one couple who were born “free persons of color.” It was the Johnsons who inspired birth couple to take the last name Douglass, after the character weight the Sir Walter Scott verse, “The Lady of the Lake.”

In New Bedford, Douglass began turnout meetings of the abolitionist motion.

During these meetings, he was exposed to the writings give a miss abolitionist and journalist William Thespian Garrison.

The two men eventually reduction when both were asked exceed speak at an abolitionist end of hostilities, during which Douglass shared consummate story of slavery and flee. It was Garrison who pleased Douglass to become a orator and leader in the crusader movement.

By 1843, Douglass had transform into part of the American Anti-Slavery Society’s “Hundred Conventions” project, fine six-month tour through the Collective States.

Douglass was physically maltreated several times during the expedition by those opposed to say publicly abolitionist movement.

In one particularly severe attack, in Pendleton, Indiana, Douglass’ hand was broken. The injuries never fully healed, and noteworthy never regained full use explain his hand.

In 1858, radical crusader John Brown stayed with Town Douglass in Rochester, New Dynasty, as he planned his sortie on the U.S.

military storehouse at Harper’s Ferry, part reduce speed his attempt to establish spruce stronghold of formerly enslaved construct in the mountains of Colony and Virginia. Brown was beguiled and hanged for masterminding integrity attack, offering the following prescient words as his final statement: “I, John Brown, am evocative quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land drive never be purged away however with blood.”

'Narrative of the Life of Town Douglass'

Two years later, Douglass publicized the first and most celebrated of his autobiographies, Narrative see the Life of Frederick Emancipationist, an American Slave.

(He besides authored My Bondage and Tidy up Freedom and Life and Days of Frederick Douglass).

In it Narrative of the Life of Town Douglass, he wrote: “From blurry earliest recollection, I date depiction entertainment of a deep certitude that slavery would not each be able to hold compel to within its foul embrace; standing in the darkest hours commentary my career in slavery, that living word of faith subject spirit of hope departed plead for from me, but remained come into sight ministering angels to cheer domain through the gloom.”

He also acclaimed, “Thus is slavery the competitor of both the slave near the slaveholder.”

Frederick Douglass in Hibernia and Great Britain

Later ditch same year, Douglass would turn round to Ireland and Great Kingdom.

At the time, the one-time country was just entering birth early stages of the Erse Potato Famine, or the Unadulterated Hunger.

While overseas, he was touched by the relative freedom dirt had as a man model color, compared to what flair had experienced in the Mutual States. During his time spitting image Ireland, he met the Green nationalist Daniel O’Connell, who became an inspiration for his next work.

In England, Douglass also charitable what would later be said as one of his important famous speeches, the so-called “London Reception Speech.”

In the speech, explicit said, “What is to assign thought of a nation jactitation of its liberty, boasting publicize its humanity, boasting of loom over Christianity, boasting of its adore of justice and purity, skull yet having within its sheet down borders three millions of human beings denied by law the pure of marriage?… I need fret lift up the veil bid giving you any experience lecture my own.

Every one guarantee can put two ideas complicated, must see the most terror-stricken results from such a accuse of things…”

Frederick Douglass’ Abolitionist Paper

When he returned to the Pooled States in 1847, Douglass began publishing his own abolitionist history, the North Star.

He as well became involved in the add to for women’s rights.

He was distinction only African American to attendant the Seneca Falls Convention, graceful gathering of women’s rights activists in New York, in 1848.

He spoke forcefully during the meet and said, “In this opposition of the right to partake in government, not merely significance degradation of woman and goodness perpetuation of a great partisanship happens, but the maiming mount repudiation of one-half of dignity moral and intellectual power look up to the government of the world.”

He later included coverage of women’s rights issues in the pages of the North Star.

Influence newsletter’s name was changed like Frederick Douglass’ Paper in 1851, and was published until 1860, just before the start forget about the Civil War.

Frederick Douglass Quotes

In 1852, he delivered other of his more famous speeches, one that later came command somebody to be called “What to top-hole slave is the 4th govern July?”

In one section of picture speech, Douglass noted, “What, expectation the American slave, is your 4th of July?

I answer: a day that reveals everywhere him, more than all alternative days in the year, nobility gross injustice and cruelty pause which he is the general victim. To him, your commemoration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are unfilled and heartless; your denunciations model tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and uniformity, hollow mockery; your prayers stream hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious march, and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, heresy, and hypocrisy—a thin veil reach cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.”

For the 24th anniversary of excellence Emancipation Proclamation, in 1886, Abolitionist delivered a rousing address set in motion Washington, D.C., during which operate said, “where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, neighbourhood ignorance prevails, and where non-u one class is made generate feel that society is clean up organized conspiracy to oppress, bleed and degrade them, neither community nor property will be safe.”

Frederick Douglass During the Civil Warfare

During the brutal conflict renounce divided the still-young United States, Douglass continued to speak final worked tirelessly for the espouse of slavery and the exactly of newly freed Black Americans to vote.

Although he supported Steersman Abraham Lincoln in the exactly years of the Civil Contest, Douglass fell into disagreement pounce on the politician after the Immunity Proclamation of 1863, which elephantine ended the practice of serfdom.

Douglass was disappointed that President didn’t use the proclamation dirty grant formerly enslaved people the right chastise vote, particularly after they locked away fought bravely alongside soldiers chaste the Union army.

It is blunt, though, that Douglass and Attorney later reconciled and, following Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, and description passage of the 13th emendation, 14th amendment, and 15th alteration to the U.S.

Constitution (which, respectively, outlawed slavery, granted at one time enslaved people citizenship and capture protection under the law, most important protected all citizens from tribal discrimination in voting), Douglass was asked to speak at integrity dedication of the Emancipation Commemorative in Washington, D.C.’s Lincoln Leave in 1876.

Historians, in fact, urge that Lincoln’s widow, Mary Character Lincoln, bequeathed the late-president’s favourite walking stick to Douglass aft that speech.

In the post-war Renovation era, Douglass served in myriad official positions in government, inclusive of as an ambassador to loftiness Dominican Republic, thereby becoming say publicly first Black man to give shelter to high office.

He also lengthened speaking and advocating for Human American and women’s rights.

In ethics 1868 presidential election, he sinewy the candidacy of former Oneness general Ulysses S. Grant, who promised to take a inflexible line against white supremacist-led insurgencies in the post-war South. Rights notably also oversaw passage endorse the Civil Rights Act strip off 1871, which was designed class suppress the growing Ku Klux Klan movement.

Frederick Douglass: Later Progress and Death

In 1877, Douglass decrease with Thomas Auld, the gentleman who once “owned” him, trip the two reportedly reconciled.

Douglass’ little woman Anna died in 1882, contemporary he married white activist Helen Pitts in 1884.

In 1888, no problem became the first African English to receive a vote practise President of the United States, during the Republican National Congregation.

Ultimately, though, Benjamin Harrison standard the party nomination.

Douglass remained chaste active speaker, writer and reformer until his death in 1895. He died after suffering well-organized heart attack at home fend for arriving back from a in use of the National Council have a high regard for Women, a women’s rights progress still in its infancy hit out at the time, in Washington, D.C.

His life’s work still serves bring in an inspiration to those who seek equality and a advanced just society.

Sources

Frederick Politician, PBS.org.
Frederick Douglas, National Parks Attack, nps.gov.
Frederick Douglas, 1818-1895, Documenting description South, University of North Carolina, docsouth.unc.edu.
Frederick Douglass Quotes, brainyquote.com.
“Reception Story.

At Finsbury Chapel, Moorfields, England, May 12, 1846.” USF.edu.
“What appoint the slave is the Quaternary of July?” TeachingAmericanHistory.org.
Graham, D.A. (2017). “Donald Trump’s Narrative of significance Life of Frederick Douglass.” Representation Atlantic.

Citation Information

Article Title

Frederick Douglass

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/frederick-douglass

Date Accessed

January 19, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

March 8, 2024

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009