Equiano’s escape or ‘redemption’ from slavery by buying his own freedom was not an option that was available to many and so should not be seen as a typical experience. Mary Prince did not really escape either, and although she decided to leave her owners, her status was contested by them and it is likely that legally she remained a slave until slavery was abolished throughout the British empire in 1834. The status of enslaved Africans in Britain had been contested throughout the 18th century both by Africans running away and by a series of court cases. By 1830 it is likely that the majority had liberated themselves by running away and demanding wages. This mass self-liberation had led to Lord Mansfield's famous legal judgement in 1772 in respect of James Somerset, which established that it was illegal for owners to re-kidnap and take out of the country former slaves who had run away.