Reverse Slavery in North Africa
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Transcript of Reverse Slavery in North Africa
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8/22/2019 Reverse Slavery in North Africa
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SLAVERYINNORTHAFRICATHEFAMOUS
STORYOFCAPTAINJAMESRILEY
When
Captain
James
Riley
published
in
1817
the
account
of
his
and
his
crews
captureandenslavementatthehandsofagroupofNorthAfricantribesmenit
becameanimmediatehit,readersbeingenthralledbythisstarkreversaloftheusual
masterslavenarrativetheywereallsousedto.RobertC.Davis,authorofChristianSlaves,MuslimMasters,looksatthestoryinthecontextofothersimilartalesofEuropeansbeingtakenasslavesontheNorthAfricancoast.
In1817,theAmericanseacaptain,JamesRiley,publishedAnAuthenticNarrativeofthe
LossoftheAmericanBrigCommerce,WreckedontheWesternCoastofAfrica,intheMonth
ofAugust,1815,withanAccountoftheSufferingsoftheSurvivingOfficersandCrew,who
wereEnslavedbytheWanderingArabsoftheGreatAfricanDesertorZahahrah.More
recently,CaptainRileysmemoirehasbeenreprinted,thoughwithatitlethatbetterfits
modernsensibilities:Sufferingsin
Africa:
the
Incredible
True
Story
of
aShipwreck,
Enslavement,andSurvivalontheSahara(NewYork:Skyhorse,2007).Thisedition,along
withafictionalizedversionbyDeanKing,calledSkeletonsontheZahara:ATrueStoryof
Survival(NewYork:BackBayBooks,2005)enjoyrespectablesalesforreprintsofabook
nearlytwocenturiesold.
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CaptainRileysstoryisprettywellsummedupbytheoriginaltitleofhisbook.While
sailingfromGibraltartotheCapeVerdeIslands,Rileysmidsizedmerchantshipgot
lostinthefogandwreckedonthewestMoroccancoast.Trappedonshoreandhaving
runoutofbothfoodandwater,Rileyandthesurvivingcrewthrewthemselvesonthe
mercyofsomepassingBerbertribesmen,whopromptlyenslavedandcarriedthemoff
intothedesert.Abused,underfed,andoverworked,thecaptiveswerenearlydead
whentheirmasterssoldthemtoanArabtrader,whoboughttheAmericansonRileys
promiseofransomiftheyreturnedtothecoast.TherestofAnAuthentic
Narrativerecountsthesurvivorsslightlylessbrutaljourneyoverdesertandmountains
totheportcityofMogador(modernEssaouira)andtheireventualfreedom.
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Likemanyanotheradventurestory,CaptainRileystalewasessentiallyghostwritten.
TherealauthorwasRileysrespectablefriend,AnthonyBleecker[orBleeker],Esquire
ofNewYork,calledinasRileyhimselfputit,tosmoothdowntheasperitiesofmy
unlearnedstyle.StartingwithRileyslogbook,notes,andrecollections,Bleecker
appliedhisowntalents,judgements,anderudition,andinunderayearcameup
withanarrativerichinemotional,andevenspiritualthemes.Intheprocess,Bleeckerspunwhathadactuallybeenafairlyshortadventurethewholestory,fromthe
shipwreckuntilthesurvivorsreturntoMogador,lastedbarelytwomonths,ofwhich
onlythefirstthreeweekswerespentasslavesoftheBerbersintoanepictaleof
survivalagainstbothhumanandnaturalodds.
AnAuthenticNarrativewashardlythefirstChristianenslavementaccountthoughit
wasnearlythelasttobesetinNorthAfrica.Otherunluckytravellershadalsobeen
shipwreckedonthewildAtlanticcoastofAfrica,southofAgadir,andafewofthem
survivedtoproducesimilaraccounts.PaulBaepler,inWhiteSlaves,
African
Masters(Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1999),offeredseveraltalesofbrutal
treatmentbysuchslaves,madeworse,ifpossible,bytheterrifyingandbleakSaharan
landscapesandbythedesperateconditionstheywereforcedtosharewiththenomadic
Berbers,whothemselveslivedonthemarginsofsurvival.OnewasbyRobertAdams,
anAfricanAmericansailorwhoseshipranagroundinthefogin1810,severalhundred
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milessouthofwhereRileycameashore.Adamswasaslaveforoverthreeyearsand
withhiswanderingmastersmadeitasfarasTimbuktu.Anothercastaway,the
AmericanwomanElizaBradley,supposedlyspenteightmonthsinBerberhands,
thoughsomehavequestionedheraccountasaworkofanonymousfictionthatalso
plagiarizeslargesectionsfromJamesRileysbestsellingaccount.
ThecaptivityaccountsofRiley,Adams,andBradley(ifindeedsheexisted)werenot
typicalexamplesofthegenre,however.FarmorecommonwerethestoriesofEuropean
andAmericanChristianswhofellintothehands,notofnomadicBerbersbutofBarbary
corsairs.Ofthesewehavescoresofexamples,publishedandunpublished,inlanguages
rangingfromLatinandSpanishtoItalian,French,Portuguese,English,Dutch,German,
andIcelandic.TheearliestdatebacktoMigueldeCervantes,aslaveinAlgiersfrom
157580;amongthelastwastheItalianpoetFilippoPanantisNarrativeofaResidencein
Algiers,publishedthesameyearasRileysAuthenticNarrative.Thecorsairswho
capturedthemwereprofessionalslavers,rangingtheentirelengthoftheMediterranean
and(after1600)outintotheAtlantic,asfarafieldastheCapeVerdeIslandsand
Iceland.Thesefreebooterstooktheircaptivesfrommerchantships,fishingboats,and
anyvillagetheycouldsack,sellingthemintheslavemarketsofSalonMoroccos
Atlanticcoast,orinAlgiers,Tunis,andTripoli,ontheBarbaryCoast.Somecaptives
theverywealthyandmanywomenwereboughtbydealerswhospecializedin
ransomingandwereoftenwelltreated,moreashostagesthanasslaves.Thegreat
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majoritywereproperlyenslaved,though,workedhardbytheirmasters,regularly
beatenandsoldwhentheywerenolongerfitorprofitable.Atleastaneighthofthe
captiveswereallocatedtothestate,itsshareinrecompenseforsupportingthecorsairs.
Theyweresettoworkonstateprojectsbuildingtheharbor,orfortifications,digging
inquarries,servingaslongshoremen;orrowinginthegalleys.Thosesoldtoprivate
masterswereeitherusedashouseservantsorfarmlaborersorrentedouttopotters,
tanners,constructionbosses,orwatersellers.Aluckyfewmanagedrunshopsor
taverns,payingtheirmastersamonthlyfeefortheprivilege.Womennotsuitablefor
ransominggenerallyendedupintheharemofwealthycorsairsortherulingpasha,
eitherasservingmaidsorconcubines.
IllustrationfromWilliamOkeleysEbenezer:or,aSmallMonumentofGreatMercy(London,1675).
WhereasCaptainRileyexperiencedhiscaptivitywithintheconfinesofasmalland
sociallysimplenomadicband,thoseEuropeanstakentoBarbarywerethrowninto
crowdedcitiesthatteemedwithmyriadsofslaves,freeChristians,renegadeChristians
(whohadtakentheturban),Turkishjanissaries,Jews,Arabs,Berbers,Greeks,and
blackAfricans.InitsheydayAlgierswasimmenselypowerful,oneoftherichestcities
ontheMediterranean,and,likeSal,akindofmerchantrepublic,runbythesame
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corsairswhohadgrownrichthroughslaving.EachofthoseBarbaryslaveswhowrote
aboutitportrayeddifferentaspectsofcaptivityFrancisKnightandJooMascarenhas
portrayedlifeasgalleyslaves;EmanueldArandaandChasteletdesBoysdescribed
manyotherkindsofslavelabor,plusthedauntingtaskofarrangingtheirownransom.
LouisMarotandWilliamOkeley,ontheotherhand,werefairlysuccessfulslave
entrepreneurs,whoalsomanagedtoescapefromtheirbondage;theAmericanJoseph
FossandtheItalianFilippoPanantiwroteatlengthabouttheconditionsofslavery
duringtheinstitutionslastyears.Manyofthesecaptivitynarrativesarenowbeing
republished.Thosethathavenotareoftenavailableonline,foranyonewhoknows
wheretolook.
Nevertheless,itisJamesRileysspareaccountofslaveryandinitsbarestandbleakest
terms
that
has
consistently
outsold
all
the
rest
of
these
narratives
combined.
Its
AmericandebutwassoonfollowedbyaBritisheditionandwithinayearaFrench
translation,titledNaufragedubrigantinamricainElcommerce,perdusurlacteoccidentale
dAfrique,aumoisdaot1815(Paris:LeNormant,1818);thefollowingyearsawa
Germanversion.Backhome,AnAuthenticNarrativewasrepublishednofewerthan
eighteentimesby1860.Likeanybestseller,thebookalsoaccrueditsshareofcelebrity
blurbs.HenryDavidThoreauandJamesFenimoreCooperbothpraisedit,and,above
all,AbrahamLincolnincludeditinhis1860campaignbiographyalongwithPilgrims
ProgressandTheBibleasoneofthebooksthathadshapedhisyouthfuldevelopment.
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DetailofanillustrationofaslavemarketinAlgiersfromPierreDansHistorievanBarbaryenendeszelfsZee
Roovers(Amsterdam,1684)
ThemodernappealofAnAuthenticNarrativecertainlystretchesbeyonditsillustrious
AmericanreadershiptherehavebeentwoFrenchrepublicationsinjustthelasttwo
years.Itspopularitysaysagreatdealaboutthepublicsnewfascinationwiththe
Muslimworldandthewholeclashofcivilizationsthesis,whichhassodominated
politicaldiscoursesince9/11.PerhapsitisnosurpriseRileysstoryhastakenagreater
holdonthemodernimaginationthanthosesetinthecitiesofBarbary.Hisaustereand
desperatetalerevolvesaroundarestrictedcastofcharacters,likeaChekhovplay
RileyhimselfandhisfewAmericancomrades;theirnamelesshandfulofBerber
tormenters;theArab,SidiHamet,whoeffectivelyrescuedthem;andtheEnglishconsul,
WilliamWillshire,whoredeemedthemandsetthemfree.Thesimplicityandintimacy
ofRileysstorywhichcloselyresemblescontemporaryAmericancaptivityaccounts,
wheresettlersfellintothehandsofAmericanIndianspresentsanuncluttered
narrativearc,aDanteantaleofthedescentofalostwandererintothehellofbondage
anddespair,onlytoriseagainthrougharedemptionearnedbysteadfastness.Itisatale
fitforthemovies(DeanKingmadeadocumentary),whichmayexplainitsenduring
popularityincomparisonwiththemorecomplexandsubtleBarbaryenslavement
narratives,wherevictimsandpersecutors,thedamnedandthesaved,therighteous
andthefoolishareoftensomuchhardertotellapart.
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RobertC.DavisisaprofessorofItalianRenaissanceandpremodernMediterraneanhistoryat
OhioStateUniversity.Hehasappearedinanumberoftelevisiondocumentaries,on
shipbuilding,Carnival,andtheMediterraneanslavetrade,inadditiontoauthoringnumerous
booksincluding
Christian
Slaves,
Muslim
Masters:
White
Slavery
in
the
Mediterranean,
the
BarbaryCoastandItaly,15001800in2004.