The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

1640-1680

Portugal began the transatlantic slave trade when they started to trade with West Africa around 1440. By the 16th century, Western Europe established an organized system of trading slaves. Although slaves rebelled, making it tougher for owners and traders to handle, slavery expanded to the “Triangular Trade” between Europe, Africa, and America. The need for slaves started when Europeans had more land and crops (mainly sugar cane) than they could handle.

1790-1800

African rulers, traders, and even military aristocracy played a huge roll in starting the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Most slaves, though, were taken during war or kidnapped. African leaders sold/traded their own race to have better business. Europeans would bring cloth, rum, guns, etc. for the exchange of slaves. Although Europeans benefited greatly from this sort of trade, so did the Africans. The leaders grew very rich and continued for ever better prosperity. The leaders and rich may have held the power of this for their country, but were not at risk for taken as well. Realizing this success, Europeans decided to venture inward from the coasts of Africa. The numbers of African Americans taken ranged from 30-200 million.

Plantation owners were top priority when it came to trading slaves. They were the ones who bought or sold slaves usually through the London Stock Exchange. This is how they made their money. Plantation owners would make slaves work on their fields from sun up to sun down (with possibly one meal a day) working on their fields to produce goods for sales. It was very tough for the African American’s new homes. When slaves broke the rules, revolted, or did anything else their owners didn’t like, even if it was a dirty look, the slave would receive drastic punishments. Their main punishment would be whipping, but other times, and depending on the “crime”, they may lose a meal, get a body part cut off, or even be hung. Decades of this cruel treatment would eventually lead up to the abolition of slavery.

The Middle Passage

The Middle Passage was the journey across the Atlantic Ocean

between America, Europe, and Africa. Ships used were built

narrow for speed and transportation of slaves, which

were packed into the slave deck underneath the main deck. The

slave deck was only four-foot high and very compact. When slaves

were being taken, many were told that their captors would eat them. The result? Slaves would try and

drown themselves. So the African’s torture didn’t start as soon as they

reached their destination. It started when they set foot on their

doom ship. They didn’t have a decent place to even sleep. Slaves were brought up periodically to eat, but some felt the need to not eat. They just lost the point in food all together. When this happened, crewman would whip them and

force them to eat. By the time of their arrival, 1/3 of the slaves taken

died.

Narrow ships were made for speed and transportation of slaves.

Slaves Coast to Coast

The countries in Africa of where the slaves were acquired were Kru,

Nigeria, Senegal-Gambia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Bola, and many others. The raid started on the coast, but

soon ventured to the interior of Africa. They were taken from their birth place to the coast of America,

Portugal, and other European countries to be auctioned off and sold. They were even sold on the

London Stock Exchange, which is a stock industry involved with

thousands of companies. When they were sold, they would travel

with their new owners to the plantation and got to work

immediately.

The Effects

After Portugal and Spain established this slave trade, many other Europeans decided to join.

This was profitable to their economies and made them more diverse and prosperous. Although this was beneficial for the owners, worse conflicts grew within Africa.

Internal wars were started, they caught new diseases, and their

economy shrank. Many in Africa grew wealthy/wealthier, but as a

majority, it went downhill.

Why?• The Slave Trade started for mainly the rich who

needed servants. Their excuse at first was that they were taking these Africans from their home to have a better opportunity at Christianity. By the 17th century, the church looked at it as a “holy cause” and was socially accepted.

Cites

• http://www.nps.gov/history/ethnography/aah/aaheritage/histContextsC.htm

• http://www.advfn.com/StockExchanges/about/LSE/LondonStockExchange.html

• http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0212661/id19.htm •     http://www.africanamericans.com/Origins.htm•   http://amistad.mysticseaport.org/discovery/story/middle.passage.html• www.mariner.org/captivepassage/middlepassage/index.html • http://www.plantcultures.org/plants/

sugar_cane_history_slave_trade.html • http://www.thenewblackmagazine.com/view.aspx?index=730 • http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?

qid=20071218145507AAg9QNj • http://www.smallislandread.com/slave_trade.htm • http://africanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa080601a.htm • http://www.afbis.com/analysis/slave.htm • http://hometown.aol.com/km78218/page12.html • http://cghs.dadeschools.net/african-american/europe/slave_trade.htm • http://www.topix.com/forum/afam/THTSM5DGPMBHGO4LO/p139• http://www.biocrawler.com/encyclopedia/Slavery • http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/

documents/digitalasset/dg_065934.jpg

• africanhistory.about.com • http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USASafrica.htm• http://www.newbern-nc.info/River_baptism_in_New_Bern.jpg