John Newton (born July 24, 1725, London, England—died December 21, 1807, London) was an English slave trader who became an Anglican minister, a hymn writer, and later a noted abolitionist, best known for his hymn “Amazing Grace.” His transformation from a faithless seaman to a man of deep faith is echoed in his work.
Newton was born to a devout Nonconformist mother and a father who was a merchant ship captain. His mother died of tuberculosis when Newton was almost 7 years old, and by age 11 he was accompanying his father on sea voyages. At age 18 he was pressed into service with the Royal Navy aboard the ship HMS Harwich. After attempting to desert, he was relieved of his post and sent aboard a passing slave vessel. Attracted to the transatlantic slave trade as “an easy and creditable way of life,” Newton later served as a sailor aboard several ships involved in it. While sailing the seas, he taught himself Latin and geometry and ascended to the rank of master in charge of navigation.
Although the Christian instruction from his mother stayed with him, Newton had largely abandoned the religion of his childhood until March 10, 1748, when he felt the first stirrings of a renewal of faith in God while steering a near-foundering ship through a fierce storm. Each subsequent year for the rest of his life, he observed the date of his “conversion” with prayer. Seeing no conflict between his burgeoning faith and his employment, Newton continued working as a trader of enslaved persons and captained three voyages trafficking captive Africans to the West Indies between 1750 and 1754. In 1754 poor health forced him to find a new occupation. In 1764 he published a chronicle of his life on the high seas and the strengthening of his religious faith entitled The Authentic Narrative.
Back on land, Newton naturally gravitated toward a religious profession and became an ordained Church of England clergyman in 1764. He accepted a post as curate at a church in Olney, Buckinghamshire. Newton took his duties seriously, preaching tirelessly to his large poor congregation. In 1767 the poet William Cowper settled in Olney, and he and Newton began a friendship that lasted until Cowper’s death. Together they wrote the Olney Hymns (1779), which contains 68 hymns by Cowper and 280 by Newton. Among Newton’s most notable contributions were “Amazing Grace,” “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken,” and “How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds!” Newton left Olney in 1780 to serve at a church in London. A year later he published a collection of religious letters, Cardiphonia, which discussed his support for the teachings of John Wesley, leader of the Methodist movement.
As his faith matured, Newton’s remorse over his involvement in the slave trade surfaced and galvanized him. In 1785 he met with William Wilberforce and counseled him to remain in politics rather than pursue a religious life. Newton would remain a spiritual mentor for the prominent abolitionist for the next 20 years. In 1787 Newton helped Wilberforce found the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade, more commonly called the Anti-Slavery Society. The following year Newton wrote Thoughts Upon the African Slave Trade, a graphic account of his experiences aboard slave ships that included a repentant confession of his personal involvement in the trade. His pamphlet sold out immediately, and the second edition was sent to every member of Parliament. Newton would go on to testify against slavery at parliamentary hearings and even spoke on the issue at a meeting of the Privy Council. He continued to preach until his death, though in the last years of his life he went blind and became increasingly feeble. He died nine months after Parliament abolished the slave trade in the British Empire.