History
When and where did slavery begin?
Human slavery began in prehistoric times. Originally it had nothing to do with race: It was a system using prisoners of war as servants or laborers for those who had captured them. Other slaves were criminals or people who could not pay their debts. Ancient Greeks, Romans, Africans and Egyptians enslaved whomever they conquered.
Slavery (as in Uncle Tom’s Cabin) started in the 15th century when Spanish and Portugues ships began transporting African slaves to the West Indies. By the end of the 16th century, Holland had become the leading African slve trader, followed by England and France after 1700. 100 years later, the Danes, Swedes, and the Germany all participated in the slave trade. The first known Africans to inhabit this region were a group of about twenty who arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619, on a Dutch ship with the English colonists. They were believed to be indentured servants, not slaves.
The early colonies needed money to survive. One of the ways the colonists earned money was by growing crops such as rice, tabacco, and indigo. These crops were sold primariliy to England, as well to other colonies. In order to grow more crops for sale, the American colonists needed steady supply of labor. The colonists originally used Native Americans and white servants to do the work on the farms and plantations. But soon, they needed more workers on their plantations. So they thought they could do the same as in Brazil or in the Carribean on sugar plantations and use (black) slave labor. Between 1700 and 1850, the demand for slaves rose greatly.
When did slavery become legal in colonial America?
Virginia made slavery legal in 1661 and passed a law that stated that children born to a slave mother would also be slaves. During the 1600s slavery based on race slowly became a way of life throughout all thirteen American colonies. By the beginning of the 17oos new laws had been created that completely barred Africans and their descendants from political rights and economic opportunities that whites enjoyed.
Where did African slaves come from?
Slaves were taken from hundreds of African villages and towns all over Africa, but most slaves were taken from coastal areas. There were many different ethnic groups: Ashanti, Ibo, Hausa, Yarubo, Mandingo and dozens more.
How were Africans captured for slavery?
Some were prisoners of tribal wars or wars betwee the African kingdoms.
Slavetraders set up trading stations in areas where they wanted to obtain slaves. They went to the local chiefs and talked them into selling prisoners of war as slaves. They offered them money or rare European goods.
Other Africans were kidnapped from their villages.
Often this was done by other Africans that were greedy for European goods that had been offered to them by the traders.
How did the captured Africans get to the Americas?
Captured Americans were taken to the trading posts and kept there until there were enough Africans to fil a ship. Tha captives were loaded onto slave ships for the trip across the atlantic ocean. Most were taken to the West Indies or South Amerika, but about half a million were brought directly to North America.
What was the voyage across the Atlantic like?
The ships carried a small crew of eight to fifteen men. Hundreds of slaves were crammed together as tightly as possible. The slaves had to lie on their backs with their had and feet chained. The decks were only about three feet in hight, so there was on room for the Africans to move or to sit up. Sometimes the slaves were taken up on deck for exercise – that is being forced by a whip to “dance”.
Did any Africans die during the voyage?
The unsanitary conditions at sea caused a lot of sickness. Because of Illness, violence, suicide and murder many of the captives (an estimateone to two million – did not survive these cruel voyages. Many others arrived psychologically damaged or near death.
extracts taken from “The New York Public Library – Amazing African American History”, Diane Patrick, 1998, Wiley
