Transatlantic Slave Trade

Where did they go?

Triangular Slave Trade15th – 19th Centuries

• 10 to 20 millions Africans were transported to the Americas for over 300 years

• The majority of the slaves were shipped to Brazil, Caribbean and the Spanish empire

• Less than 5% travelled to N. America• Slave trading was important to European’s

economic development• Western and Central Africa’s population was

greatly impacted

Europeans enslaved Africans

• Profitable enterprise• Slaves were cheap source of labor for plantations• Africans slaves produced the following items on

the plantation:CottonSugarTobaccoMolassesRum

Africans Enslaved their own people

One African people(chief) raided another to sell to the Europeans

Traded Guns, clothes, and beadsCowrie shells (used as money) and

brandyA few Africans sold themselves into

slavery to escape the hardship and famine in their home countries

Treatment of the Slaves

• Captured Africans were treated brutally• Given little food or clothing and often beaten• Slaves traders packed the slaves tightly into ships,

shackled together with chains• They were left to make the Middle Passage in

deplorable conditions(urine, feces, and vomit)

Treatment of the Slaves

•The Middle Passage was the leg of the trip from Africa to the Americas•Many Africans died on the way to America•Africans were forced to lay beside one another with bodies touching.•This was a way to strip slaves of their identity and self appreciation. It made it easier for them to be controlled.

How long did the slave trade last?

• About 500 years• From 15th – 19th Century (1401 to 1900)

Reasons for Europeans to Abolish Slave Trade

• Moral opposition (people felt that it was wrong) • Partly as a result of Industrial

Revolution• Industrial Revolution proved trade in

manufactured goods and raw materials to be more profitable than human capital

Overall Effects of Slavery on Africa and its development

• Depopulation of African’s labor base• Tore apart communities and

families• Hindered(stalled) economic

development

Overall Effects of slavery on European development

• Slavery was a profitable industry• Provided labor needed on their

plantations• Helped build the capital(money)

necessary for Industrial Revolutions