1. Chapter 2
Middle Passage

2. I. European Exploration ~ Colonization (Section 1)
Western European countries expand during 15th century because they . . .
Explore, conquer, and colonize
Trade
Eastern markets of India, China, and Japan
New World
Demand for laborers led to Atlantic slave trade!

3. II. The Slave Trade in Africa
Been around for a LONG time!
African kingdoms and Islamic nations conduct brisk commerce
Not race based (as it will be in America)
West African slave trade dealt mainly in women and children (to serve as concubines and servants)

4. III. The Origins of the Atlantic Slave Trade
In 15th century, slaves used as domestic servants on Iberian Peninsula (Spain/Portugal)
Slaves purchased from African traders
Portugal and Spain dominated slave trade in 16th century (1500s)
Dutch dominated 17th century (1600s)
English dominated 18th century (1700s) – think Roots and the Lord Ligonier ship

5. IV. Growth of the Atlantic Slave Trade
High demand for labor in 16th century to work in
Spanish gold and silver mines
Portuguese sugar plantations
Tobacco, rice and indigo
SEE Figure 2-1 and Table 2-1 (Chapter 2)

6. Estimated Annual Export of Slaves from Western Africa to the Americas, 1500-1700

7. Estimated Slave Imports by Destination, 1451-1870

8. Growth of the Atlantic Slave Trade (cont.)
Slavery was harsher in the Americas, because it was
Based on race
Mostly males
Believed to be stronger for labor
Focused on agricultural work
Known as “Chattel” (a type of slavery) where the slaves lost rights as human beings

9. Growth of the Atlantic Slave Trade (cont.)
Triangle trade and profits
Slave, tobacco, and sugar profits funded Industrial Revolution
See Map of Triangle Trade

10. Triangle Trade: Who Gets What?

11. V. The African-American Ordeal: Capture to Destination
Slavery: byproduct of war between the West African kingdoms
European traders provided firearms to West Africans – they did not instigate fighting

12. The African-American Ordeal: Capture to Destination (cont.)
High mortality rate
Exhaustion, suicide, murder
Endured long, forced marches to the coast
Factories (fortified structures) served as
Headquarters for the traders
Warehouses for the trade goods
Pens or dungeons for captives/slaves

13. Factories: This one from the Gulf of Guinea (modern Nigeria)
From Thomas Astley, A New and General Collection of Voyages, 1746 Courtesy of the Library of Congress

14. Cape Coast Castle (Ghana)

15. President Obama’s Trip to Cape Coast Castle
CNN w/ Anderson Cooper

16. The Crossing (Middle Passage)
40 to 180 days to reach the Caribbean
Pirates attacked Spanish ships
Frightening experience for all who sailed

17. “The Slavers” (slave ships)
Small and narrow ships
Two slaves per ship-tonnage formula
Most captains were “tight packers”
Ignored formula in the name of profits

18. From the Collection: The Atlantic Slave Trade and Life in the AmericasJames S. Handler and Michael L. Tuite Jr.(c) 2006 Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and University of Virginia

19. Slaves were forced to spend the voyage sitting on deck of the ship Wildfire

20. The Slavers (cont.)
“Many slaves became seasick or developed diarrhoea (sic). Unable to move because they were chained into their positions, the slave's deck became a stinking mass of human waste. Slaves who had developed sores where their chains had rubbed their skin, had festering wounds often with maggots eating away their flesh.”

21. The Slavers (cont.) Crowded, unsanitary conditions
Slaves rode on planks 66” x 15”
only 20”– 25” of headroom
Males chained together in pairs
Kept apart from women and children
High mortality rates
One-third perish between capture and embarkation

23. A Slave’s Story Olaudah Equiano Conditions Suicides Smells Feedings
Writes autobiography of his capture/voyage
Conditions
Suicides
Smells
Feedings
See VOICES

24. A Captain’s Story John Newton Evangelical Christian Slaver captain
Anglican priest
Repentance
Amazing Grace

25. Provisions for the Middle Passage
Slaves fed twice per day
Poor and insufficient diet
Vegetable pulps, stews, and fruits
Denied meat or fish
Ten people eating from one bucket
Unwashed hands spread disease
Malnutrition, weakness, depression, death

26. Sanitation, Disease, and Death
Astronomically high before 1750
Poor sanitation
No germ theory prior to early 20th century
Malaria, yellow fever, smallpox, dysentery
After 1750
Faster ships
Hygiene and diet better understood
Early forms of smallpox vaccinations

27. Resistance and Revolt at Sea
Uprisings were common
Most rebellions before sailing
Some preferred death to bondage
Justification for harsh treatment by slavers

28. Cruelty Middle passage horrors exaggerated Cultural context
Historian Eric Williams
Cultural context
Exceptionally cruel
Slaves had half the space allowed indentured servants and convicts
Slavery suitable only for non-Christians
Brutal treatment by crew members

29. African Women on Slave Ships
Less protection against unwanted sexual attention from European men
African women worth half the price of African men in the Caribbean markets
Separation from male slaves made them easier targets
Historian Barbara Bush
Middle passage horrors depressed sex drives

30. VI. Landing and Sale in the West Indies
Pre-sale
Bathed and exercised
Oiled bodies to conceal blemishes and bruises
Hemp plugs

31. VII. Seasoning Modify behavior and attitude
Preparation for North American planters

32. VII. Seasoning (cont.) Creoles Old Africans New Africans
slaves born in the Americas
worth three times price of unseasoned Africans
Old Africans
Lived in the Americas for some time
New Africans
Had just survived the middle passage
Creoles and Old Africans instruct New Africans

33. VIII. The End of the Journey
Survival
One-third died
Men died at a greater rate than women
Adapted to new foods
Learned a new language
Creole dialect well enough to obey commands
Psychological ~ no longer suicidal
Africans retained culture despite the hardships and cruel treatment
Created bonds with shipmates that replaced blood kinship

34. IX. The Ending of the Atlantic Slave Trade
Cruelties help end Atlantic slave trade
English abolitionists
Thomas Clarkson, William Wilberforce, and Granville Sharp
Moral crusade and economy less dependent on slave trade
Great Britain bans Atlantic slave trade in 1807
Patrols African coast to enforce
United States Congress outlaws slave trade in 1808
Guinea and western central African kingdoms oppose banning slave trade

35. X. Conclusion
Nine to eleven million Africans brought to the Americas during three centuries of trade
Millions more died
Most arrived between 1701 and 1810
Only 600,000 reached the British colonies of North America