The African Slave Trade Beginnings The African slave

The African Slave Trade

Beginnings • The African slave trade is believed to have started in 1441 when a ship sailing for Prince Henry of Portugal returned with 12 African for sale into slavery. • The slave trade would continue for the next 400 years and involved 12 to 15 million Africans. • Portugal, Spain, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and the United States would all profit from the trade.

• Slavery had existed since ancient times. The Greeks, Romans, and other ancient societies had practiced slavery. • The African Slavery was different in 3 important ways. • It involved many more people than before • Slaves were treated much harsher than before • Unlike before, Race and racism will be the major factor in determining who would be a slave

• Once captured, the people would be forced to marched to west coast of Africa • Sometimes the forced march could be as long as 500 miles and take up to 8 months to reach the coast

Slave “Factories” • Often the people would be sold by the “castle” to a “factory”. • They would be worked until a slave ship arrived. Then the “factory” would sell them to the ship’s captain

The Middle Passage • After purchase, Africans would be chained to each other and placed below deck • They would remained chained below deck for most of the eight weeks it took to make to voyage to America • There were two ways of loading the slave ships: “Tight Pack” and “Loose Pack”

“Tight Pack” • Africans were loaded using every available space on the ship • As many as 1000 people would be chained below deck • Picture on the bottom shows a “Tight Pack”

• Africans, sick with disease, were often thrown overboard at the first symptom signs

Slave Auctions • Those Africans who survived the Middle Passage were offered for sale into slavery at a slave auction. • Charleston, Savannah, and New Orleans were the main action places

Slavery Images

End of the Nightmare • In 1807 Great Britain was the first nation to make the African slave trade illegal • The United States outlawed the trade in 1808. African continued to be smuggled into the U. S. until 1862 • The last Middle Passage voyage took place in 1888 when a Portuguese slave ship sailed to Brazil