Slave Trade Notes

Learning Objectives

Examine how the slave trade was organised.
Assess Britain’s role in the slave trade.

9.1a - What was the slave trade?

Keywords and Definitions

Slave Trade – the capturing, selling and buying slaves

Important Note

This is a very serious, and mature topic. No jokes, unserious or insensitive comments are acceptable. Use the term "enslaved person" not “slave”, emphasizing their personhood.

Britain's Rise as a Trading Nation

During the 1500s and 1600s, Britain became a powerful trading nation.
‘Trade’ involves buying and selling goods; goods are items that can be bought.
Trading was a lucrative way to generate wealth.
Goods were traded, imported, and exported, enriching many British individuals.
However, this also included the trade of humans, known as the ‘slave trade’ – the capturing, enslaving, selling, and buying of people.

Slavery as a Profitable International Business

In the 1500s, slavery was a profitable international business, generating significant wealth while forcibly relocating people to work to death.
Throughout the 1500s, many Europeans settled in the Americas, establishing farms that grew crops popular in warmer climates but not in Europe, such as sugar, tobacco, and cotton.
These crops were sold at high prices.

Enslavement of Indigenous People

Initially, European invaders forced indigenous people to work the farms.
Many indigenous people either escaped, were wiped out by disease, or died due to cruel treatment.

The Shift to Enslaving Africans

After depleting the supply of indigenous people to enslave, Europeans turned to Africa to “import” enslaved people.

The Triangular Trade Route

The slave trade operated as a triangular route:

  1. European ships loaded with manufactured goods (cloth, pots, guns) would leave Europe.

  2. These ships would sail to the African coast to acquire people through capture.

  3. Traders would exchange goods with local African tribespeople for prisoners from other tribes, who were captured to be sold into slavery.

  4. The ships would then transport enslaved people across the “Middle Passage” to the Americas.

  5. Upon arrival, the enslaved people were “cleaned,” sold, and forced to work.

  6. The ships would then be loaded with raw materials produced by the enslaved people and transported back to Europe.

9.1b What was the slave trade?

LO: Examine how the slave trade was organised, Assess Britain’s role in the slave trade

Learning Objectives:

Examine how the slave trade was organised.
Assess Britain’s role in the slave trade.

9.1b - What was the slave trade?

Keywords and Definitions

Important Note

This is a very serious, and mature topic.
I will not accept any jokes, unserious or insensitive
comments.

Britain's Involvement in the Slave Trade

The first British enslaver was John Hawkins in 1562. He captured 300 people from the West Coast of Africa and sold them in the West Indies.
The first enslaved Africans to work on stolen British land in North America arrived in 1619.
Britain was a major player in the slave trade, generating some of the largest profits, although it was not the only European country involved.
Queen Elizabeth I was a business partner with John Hawkins.
Charles II was a partner in the Royal Africa Company.
Many enslaved people were branded with the letter ‘DY’ when captured, after the “Duke of York”, Charles II’s brother, King James II.

Financial Impact of the Slave Trade on Britain

Between the early 1600s and 1807, the trading of enslaved people generated profit over 6,024,931,252 ringgit.
This wealth contributed to Britain becoming one of the world's richest and most powerful nations.
Many prominent buildings in large English cities were constructed using profits from slavery.
Portugal and Britain were the two most active enslaving nations, accounting for an estimated 70\% of all Africans forcibly taken to the Americas and West Indies.