Key Concepts of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

Royal African Company

One of the three principal English trading companies formed to trade in the Gold Coast, among others.

Dutch West India Company

The Dutch West India Company was a 17th-century trading company that engaged in transatlantic slave trade, colonization, and commerce.

Triangular trade

The Triangular Trade was a transatlantic system linking Europe, Africa, and the Americas, exchanging goods, enslaved people, and resources.

Barracoon

A barracoon was a temporary enclosure or barracks where enslaved Africans were confined before being transported across the Atlantic.

Swendsborg Slave Castle

Swensborg Slave Castle, also known as Fort Elmina or Elmina Castle, located in present-day Ghana, was a significant site in the transatlantic slave trade, serving as a holding place for enslaved Africans before their transport to the Americas.

Elmina

It was the first point of contact with Europeans and the Portuguese in 1471; the castle was taken over by the Dutch in 1637; the castle was used to store enslaved people, ivory, and gold awaiting collection.

Cape coast castle

Cape Coast Castle was a central fortress on the Gold Coast (modern-day Ghana) used for holding enslaved Africans before their transport across the Atlantic during the transatlantic slave trade.

Lisbon

During the 1600-1865 period, Lisbon, Portugal's capital, was a significant European port involved in the early transatlantic slave trade, where enslaved Africans were sold and transported to the Americas.

1450

In 1450, a notable incident was the fall of the Portuguese fortress of Ceuta in North Africa, which marked a significant moment in European expansion and the beginning of Portugal's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade, leading to increased exploration and trade in Africa.

1470

In 1470, the Portuguese established a trading post at Arguin, off the coast of present-day Mauritania, which became a significant point for trade, including the exchange of enslaved Africans, marking the expansion of European influence in West Africa.

1518

4000 Africans sent to New Spain.

1607

British colonization of Jamestown.

1619

The first enslaved people are brought to Virginia supposedly by the Dutch.

1630

In 1630, the Puritans founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony, leading to increased migration of English settlers to New England. This impacted Indigenous populations and set the stage for later racial dynamics and the reliance on enslaved labor in the colonies.

1661

The Barbados slave code marked the beginning of the legal codification of slavery.

1655

The English captured Jamaica.

1712

NY slave code of 1712: enslaved people found guilty of murder, rape, arson, or assault will be punished with death.

1741

New York Uprising.

1776

In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was adopted, asserting the colonies' desire for freedom from British rule; however, it simultaneously upheld slavery, revealing the contradictions between liberty and the institution of slavery in America.

1791

The Haitian revolution began as a slave uprising near Le Cap in the French West Indian colony of Santo Domingo and led to the establishment of the black nation of Haiti in 1801.

1793

The cotton gin is developed; Upper Canada abolishes slavery; waves of white refugees pour into U.S. ports, fleeing the insurrection in Santo Domingo.

Gold coast

In the area of Ghana, where gold was traded for enslaved people.

Ivory Coast

The Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire) was a crucial region in West Africa during the 1600-1865 period, and it was involved in the trade of enslaved people and resources, particularly ivory and palm oil.

Slave coast

The Slave Coast, located in present-day Benin and Togo, was a significant region in the transatlantic slave trade, where many enslaved Africans were captured and sold to European traders.

Grain coast

The Grain Coast, in present-day Liberia, was named for its export of grain crops and served as a trade route in the transatlantic slave trade, linking enslaved Africans to European markets.

Benin

Benin, in West Africa, was a prominent kingdom involved in the transatlantic slave trade, capturing and selling enslaved people to European traders from the 16th to the 19th centuries.

Sao tome

São Tomé, an island off the coast of West Africa, became a Portuguese plantation colony in the 15th century, heavily relying on enslaved African labor for sugar production during the transatlantic slave trade.

Maroon

When the English captured Jamaica in 1655, many fought with the Spanish, who gave them their freedom. They fled to the mountains, resisting the British for many years to maintain their independence, becoming known as Maroon.

Quilombo

Another name for Maroons is that these societies ranged from tiny bands that survived less than a year to powerful states encompassing thousands of members that survived for generations and centuries.

Northwest ordinance

Slavery was outlawed in this territory because of the 1787 Northwest Ordinance, which allowed settlers into the land northwest of the Ohio River but outlawed slavery in the area.

Barbadian slave code

1661 marked the beginning of the legal codification of slavery. It established the property element of enslaved Black people owned by the British. It also served as the basis for the slave codes adopted in several other British colonies, including Jamaica in 1664, South Carolina in 1692, and Antigua in 1702.

Code noir

The Code Noir, established in 1685, was a French colonial law governing the treatment of enslaved people in the French colonies, outlining their rights and the obligations of enslavers.

Dominican Republic

When the first sugar cane is grown in America, 1505.

Lowcountry

The Lowcountry refers to the coastal region of South Carolina and Georgia, where plantation agriculture relied heavily on enslaved African labor, particularly for rice and indigo cultivation during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Creole

Creole languages are hybrids that blend linguistic influences from various sources. They arise when people of diverse backgrounds come together and must communicate. The Gullah language is one example.

Seasoning

Seasoning was the process of training and acclimating newly enslaved Africans to plantation life in the Americas, often involving harsh treatment to enforce obedience.

Middle passage

The Middle Passage refers to the brutal transatlantic journey endured by enslaved Africans, where millions were forcibly transported from Africa to the Americas under horrific conditions.

Dehydration

Dehydration during the Middle Passage was a severe health risk for enslaved Africans, caused by inadequate water supply, leading to suffering and high mortality rates.

Acculturation

Acculturation is how enslaved Africans adapted to and blended their cultural practices with European colonizers in the Americas, influencing music, cuisine, and language.

Indentured servants

Indentured servants were individuals who signed contracts to work for a specified period in exchange for passage to the Americas, often facing harsh conditions similar to those of enslaved people.

Miscegenation

Miscegenation refers to the interbreeding of people of different racial backgrounds, particularly between white Europeans and enslaved Africans, often viewed negatively in the context of 19th-century American laws and societal norms.

Chesapeake

The Chesapeake region, encompassing Maryland and Virginia, was a key area for tobacco plantations, heavily relying on enslaved African labor from the 17th to 19th centuries.

Montgomerie's act

1730; enslaved people could not own guns, clubs, or any potential weapon; more than two enslaved people could not meet at one time; could not be on the street after dark without the owner's permission; could not be disorderly on the streets.

Olaudah Equiano

Olaudah Equiano was an enslaved African who became a prominent abolitionist and author; his autobiography detailed his experiences in slavery and the Middle Passage, influencing the anti-slavery movement.

Lord Dunmore and his proclamation

Lord Dunmore's Proclamation, issued in 1775, promised freedom to enslaved Africans who joined British forces in the American Revolutionary War, aiming to undermine colonial resistance.

Ottobah Lugano

Ottobah Cugoano, a former enslaved African and abolitionist, wrote 'Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evil of Slavery' in 1787, advocating for freedom and human rights.

Crispus Attucks

One of many patriot soldiers, an escaped slave, the son of an African man and a Native American woman, was the first martyr of the American Revolution, the first to die at the Boston massacre.

Ethiopian regiment

The group of black loyalist soldiers that formed after Lord Dunmore passed a law in 1775 that enslaved Black people could become free if they joined the army.

Gabriel Prosser

Gabriel Prosser was an enslaved Blacksmith who led a major slave revolt in Virginia in 1800, seeking to gain freedom for enslaved people, but was ultimately captured and executed.

Haitian revolution

1791; the Haitian revolution began as a slave uprising near Le Cap in the French West Indian colony of Santo Domingo and led to the establishment of the black nation of Haiti in 1801.

Peter Salem

Peter Salem was an enslaved African American who fought for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, notably at the Battle of Bunker Hill, gaining freedom for his service.

Benjamin Banneker

Benjamin Banneker was a free African American mathematician, astronomer, and writer known for his contributions to science and his advocacy for racial equality in the 18th century.

Prince hall

Prince Hall was an African American abolitionist and Mason who founded the first Black Freemason lodge in the United States in 1775, promoting education and civil rights for African Americans.

James forten

James Forten was a prominent African American abolitionist and businessman in the early 19th century, known for his activism against slavery and successful sailmaking business in Philadelphia.

Oney judge

Oney Judge was an enslaved woman owned by George Washington who escaped to freedom in 1796, becoming an essential figure in the fight against slavery.

Timothy fitch

Timothy Fitch was an African American who, during the late 18th century, fought for his freedom by serving as a soldier in the Revolutionary War, later becoming an advocate for abolition.

Toussaint overture

Toussaint Louverture was a leader of the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) who fought for the abolition of slavery and the establishment of Haiti as the first independent Black republic.

Mary prince

Mary Prince was an enslaved African woman who became an abolitionist and author of 'The History of Mary Prince' (1831), the first account of a Black woman's experience of slavery published in England.

Phyllis Wheatley

Phillis Wheatley was the first published African American poet, known for her work in the 18th century, which addressed themes of freedom, religion, and the experiences of enslaved people.

Stono rebellion

The Stono Rebellion was a slave uprising in South Carolina in 1739, where enslaved Africans revolted against their enslavers, leading to stricter slave codes and increased repression.

Isabella baumfree

Isabella Baumfree, better known as Sojourner Truth, was an African American abolitionist and women's rights advocate renowned for her powerful speeches, including 'Ain't I a Woman?' in 1851.

Sally Hemings

Sally Hemings was an enslaved woman of mixed race who had a long-term relationship with Thomas Jefferson, bearing several of his children, raising significant questions about race, power, and consent in early American history.

13th amendment

The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States, except as punishment for a crime.

Racialization

Racialization is the social process through which individuals or groups are classified and treated according to perceived racial characteristics, impacting their identity and societal experiences.

Portuguese company of cacheo

The Portuguese Company of Cacheo was involved in the African slave trade, specifically in the capture and export of enslaved Africans to the Americas during the 17th century.

Castas

People of mixed origin in Spanish colonial society formed the Castas system.