The Atlantic slave trade.docx

The Atlantic slave trade.docx

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TheAtlanticslavetrade

TheAtlanticslavetrade,alsoknownasthetransatlanticslavetrade,wasthetrading,primarilyofAfricanpeople,tothecoloniesoftheNewWorldthatoccurredinandaroundtheAtlanticOcean.Itlastedfromthe16thtothe19thcenturies.MostenslavedpeoplewereshippedfromWestAfricaandCentralAfricaandtakentoNorthandSouthAmerica[1]toworkasunpaidlaboronsugar,coffee,cocoaandcottonplantations,ingoldandsilvermines,inricefields,orinhousestoworkasservants.Theshipperswere,inorderofscale,thePortuguese（andBrazilians）,theEnglish,theFrench,theSpaniards,theDutch,andtheNorthAmericans.[1]EnslavedpeopleweregenerallyobtainedthroughcoastaltradingwithAfricans,thoughsomewerecapturedbyEuropeanslavetradersthroughraidsandkidnapping.[2][3]Mostcontemporaryhistoriansestimatethatbetween9.4and12million[4][5]AfricansarrivedintheNewWorld,[6][7]althoughthenumberofpeopletakenfromtheirhomesteadisconsiderablyhigher.[8][9]

Theslave-tradeissometimescalledtheMaafabyAfricanandAfrican-Americanscholars,meaning"holocaust"or"greatdisaster"inSwahili.Slaverywasoneelementofathree-parteconomiccycle—theTriangularTradeanditsMiddlePassage—whichultimatelyinvolvedfourcontinents,fourcenturiesandmillionsofpeople.

Contents

[hide]

∙1Origins

∙2Triangulartrade

∙3Labourandslavery

∙4Africanslavemarket

o4.1AfricanversusEuropeanslavery

o4.2SlaveMarketRegionsandParticipation

o4.3AfricankingdomsoftheEra

▪4.3.1Ethnicgroups

∙5Humantoll

o5.1Africanconflicts

o5.2Portfactories

o5.3Atlanticshipment

o5.4Seasoningcamps

∙6Europeancompetition

∙7NewWorlddestinations

∙8Economicsofslavery

∙9Effects

o9.1EffectontheeconomyofAfrica

o9.2EffectsontheeconomyofEurope

o9.3Demographics

o9.4Legacyofracism

∙10EndoftheAtlanticslavetrade

o10.1Abolitionargument

∙11Apologies

∙12Seealso

∙13References

∙14Furtherreading

∙15Externallinks

[edit]Origins

Seealso:

Historyofslavery,Africanslavetrade, andEuropeancolonizationoftheAmericas

SlaverywaspracticedinAfricabeforethebeginningoftheAtlanticslavetrade.[10]SlaveryandtheslavetradewereanintegralpartofAfricansocietiesandstateswhichsuppliedtheArabworldwithenslavedpeopleforcenturiesbeforethearrivaloftheEuropeans.[11]TheAfricanslavetradeprovidedalargenumberofslavestoEuropeansandtheirAfricanagents.[12][13]

TheAtlanticslavetradeiscustomarilydividedintotwoeras,knownastheFirstandSecondAtlanticSystems.

TheFirstAtlanticsystemwasthetradeofenslavedAfricansto,primarily,SouthAmericancoloniesofthePortugueseandSpanishempires;itaccountedforonlyslightlymorethan3%ofallAtlanticslavetrade.Itstarted（onasignificantscale）inabout1502[14]andlasteduntil1580,whenPortugalwastemporarilyunitedwithSpain.WhilethePortuguesetradedenslavedpeoplethemselves,theSpanishempirereliedontheasientosystem,awardingmerchants（mostlyfromothercountries）thelicensetotradeenslavedpeopletotheircolonies.DuringthefirstAtlanticsystemmostofthesetraderswerePortuguese,givingthemanear-monopolyduringtheera,althoughsomeDutch,English,SpanishandFrenchtradersalsoparticipatedintheslavetrade.[15]Aftertheunion,Portugalwasweakened,withitscolonialempirebeingattackedbytheDutchandEnglish.

TheSecondAtlanticsystemwasthetradeofenslavedAfricansbymostlyEnglish,Brazilian,FrenchandDutchtraders.ThemaindestinationsofthisphaseweretheCaribbeancolonies,BrazilandNorthAmerica,asanumberofEuropeancountriesbuiltupeconomicallyslave-dependentcolonialempiresintheNewWorld.AmongstthepioneersofthissystemwereFrancisDrakeandJohnHawkins[citationneeded].

Onlyslightlymorethan3percentoftheenslavedpeopleexportedweretradedbetween1450and1600,16%inthe17thcentury.Morethanhalfofthemwereexportedinthe18thcentury,theremaining28.5%inthe19thcentury.[16]

[edit]Triangulartrade

Mainarticle:

TriangularTrade

EuropeancolonistsinitiallypracticedsystemsofbothbondedlabourandIndianslavery,enslavingmanyofthenativesoftheNewWorld.Foravarietyofreasons,AfricansreplacedIndiansasthemainpopulationofenslavedpeopleintheAmericas.Insomecases,suchasonsomeoftheCaribbeanIslands,warfareanddiseasessuchassmallpoxeliminatedthenativescompletely.Inothercases,suchasinSouthCarolina,Virginia,andNewEngland,theneedforallianceswithnativetribescoupledwiththeavailabilityofenslavedAfricansataffordableprices（beginningintheearly18thcenturyforthesecolonies）resultedinashiftawayfromIndianslavery.

"TheSlaveTrade"byAugusteFrancoisBiard,1840

AburialgroundinCampeche,Mexico,suggestsslaveshadbeenbroughttherenotlongafterHernánCortéscompletedthesubjugationofAztecandMayanMexico.Thegraveyardhadbeeninusefromapproximately1550tothelate1600s.[17]

ThefirstsideofthetrianglewastheexportofgoodsfromEuropetoAfrica.AnumberofAfricankingsandmerchantstookpartinthetradingofenslavedpeoplefrom1440toabout1900.Foreachcaptive,theAfricanrulerswouldreceiveavarietyofgoodsfromEurope.Theseincludedguns,ammunitionandotherfactorymadegoods.ThesecondlegofthetriangleexportedenslavedAfricansacrosstheAtlanticOceantotheAmericasandtheCaribbeanIslands.ThethirdandfinalpartofthetrianglewasthereturnofgoodstoEuropefromtheAmericas.Thegoodsweretheproductsofslave-labourplantationsandincludedcotton,sugar,tobacco,molassesandrum.

However,Brazil（themainimporterofslaves）manufacturedthesegoodsinSouthAmericaanddirectlytradedwithAfricanports,thusnottakingpartinatriangulartrade.[citationneeded]

[edit]Labourandslavery

Anantislaverymedallionoftheearly19thcentury.

TheAtlanticSlaveTradewastheresultof,amongotherthings,labourshortage.NativepeopleswereatfirstutilisedasslavelabourbyEuropeans,untilalargenumberdiedfromoverworkandOldWorlddiseases.[18]Alternativesourcesoflabour,suchasindenturedservitude,failedtoprovideasufficientworkforce.

Manycropscouldnotbesoldforprofit,orevengrown,inEurope.ExportingcropsandgoodsfromtheNewWorldtoEuropeoftenprovedtobemorecosteffectivethanproducingthemontheEuropeanmainland.Avastamountoflabourwasneededfortheplantationsintheintensivegrowing,harvestingandprocessingoftheseprizedtropicalcrops.WesternAfrica（partofwhichbecameknownas'theSlaveCoast'）,andlaterCentralAfrica,becamethesourceforenslavedpeopletomeetthedemandforlabour.

Thebasicreasonfortheconstantshortageoflabourwasthat,withlargeamountsofcheaplandavailableandlotsoflandownerssearchingforworkers,freeEuropeanimmigrantswereabletobecomelandownersthemselvesafterarelativelyshorttime,thusincreasingtheneedforworkers.[19]

[edit]Africanslavemarket

TheAtlanticslavetradewasnottheonlyslavetradetakingatollonAfrica,althoughitwasthelargestinvolumeandintensity.AsElikiaM’bokolowroteinLeMondediplomatique:

"TheAfricancontinentwasbledofitshumanresourcesviaallpossibleroutes.AcrosstheSahara,throughtheRedSea,fromtheIndianOceanportsandacrosstheAtlantic.AtleasttencenturiesofslaveryforthebenefitoftheMuslimcountries（fromtheninthtothenineteenth）....FourmillionenslavedpeopleexportedviatheRedSea,anotherfourmillionthroughtheSwahiliportsoftheIndianOcean,perhapsasmanyasninemillionalongthetrans-Saharancaravanroute,andeleventotwentymillion（dependingontheauthor）acrosstheAtlanticOcean."[20]

AccordingtoJohnK.Thornton,EuropeansusuallyboughtenslavedpeoplewhowerecapturedinendemicwarfarebetweenAfricanstates.[21]TherewerealsoAfricanswhohadmadeabusinessoutofcapturingotherAfricansandsellingthem.[22]ThorntonsaysthatEuropeansprovidedalargenewmarketforanalreadyexistingtrade.[23]AndwhileanAfricanheldinslaveryinhisownregionofAfricamightescape,apersonshippedawaywassurenevertoreturn.PeoplelivingaroundtheNigerRiverweretransportedfromthesemarketstothecoastandsoldatEuropeantradingportsinexchangeformusketsandmanufacturedgoodssuchasclothoralcohol.[24]

TheAtlanticslavetradepeakedinthelasttwodecadesofthe18thcentury,[25]duringandfollowingtheKongoCivilWar.[26].WarsamongsttinystatesalongtheNigerRiver'sIgbo-inhabitedregionandtheaccompanyingbanditryalsospikedinthisperiod.[22]AnotherreasonforsurplussupplyofenslavedpeoplewasmajorwarfareconductedbyexpandingstatessuchasthekingdomofDahomey,[27]theOyoEmpireandAsanteEmpire.[28]

EuropeansrarelyenteredtheinteriorofAfrica,duetofearofdiseaseandfierceAfricanresistance.[29]Theenslavedpeoplewouldbebroughttocoastaloutpostswheretheywouldbetradedforgoods.Enslavementbecameamajorby-productofwarinAfricaasnationstatesexpandedthroughmilitaryconflictsinmanycasesthroughdeliberatesponsorshipofbenefitingWesternEuropeannations.Duringsuchperiodsofrapidstateformationorexpansion（AsanteorDahomeybeinggoodexamples）,slaveryformedanimportantelementofpoliticallifewhichtheEuropeansexploited:

AsQueenSara'spleatothePortuguesecourtsrevealed,thesystembecame"selltotheEuropeansorbesoldtotheEuropeans".InAfrica,convictedcriminalscouldbepunishedbyenslavement,apunishmentwhichbecamemoreprevalent