Slave trading involves the sale of a person with it, or it can serve as an unpaid servant for the performance of labor. In Africa, the question of when the slave trade began is a matter of debate. Some scholars argue that Africans were engaged in the slave trade even before the arrival of Europeans, while others argue that it was the arrival of Europeans in the 15th century that sparked the trade.
However, the end result is the slave trade. Affected African countries are negatively depriving them of strong people who could expand their economies, while European countries as well as America have the slave trade to thank for how far they have come in terms of economic growth. The slaves provided the labor needed on the farms, which formed the backbone of economic growth at the time.
Who Was Enslaved?
People of all ages could be captured and housed on offer. The social misfits are the ones originally sold as punishment. This later changed with the boom in commerce and became discriminatory, with brokers putting up even innocent people for sale. They sacked a village and took any able-bodied people they could find and led them to a sales area.
The older and really young children were the ones who were the only ones spared in these raids, who were deemed unfit for work and fetched too low a price on the trade zone. Especially young men and women, teenagers and teenagers were hit because of their strong bodies and health.
The actual slave trade
The viable candidates were captured from various areas of the African interior and led to the coast on foot. Various trading zones were set up along the coast. There the African slave traders met with the captains and doctors of ships from America.
The captain’s responsibility was to manage the sale of slaves at the trading posts. The doctor’s work consisted of examining the health of the slaves and removing any unfit for work. Those fit for the journey and the job ahead were then packed onto the ships and their payments made. Those not fit enough would then be brought back inland by the traders who held slave fairs inland. At these fairs they were sold to Africans who needed slave labor. However, other rejected slaves were killed by the traders!
The stock exchanges
Portugal and Spain were the most common European clients for slavery. This is because they had acquired colonies in American lands where large farms required labour. The sugar plantations in Brazil that belonged to Portugal required many workers, as did the Spanish sugar plantations in the West Indies. England, Netherlands and France soon joined the trade.
The black traders desperately needed war ammunition, and these European countries had weapons in abundance. They were payments for the slaves as well as other substances like rum and clothing. The Africans needed the guns to help in their constant battles with neighboring communities.
triangular trade
The African slave trade took a triangular shape in terms of distances traveled. On one side are the African trading territories, on the other side are the European countries, and on the other side are the American colonies. During this time a ship from the European countries sailed with clothes, rams, weapons and other material they would need for the exchange. Another sailed to America from the African shores to supply the plantations with slaves. Another ship sailed to Europe from the American coast laden with sugar cane and molasses to make rum.
Journey of the Slaves
The number of slaves to be transported was quite high and some captains preferred to transport some to reduce the number of deaths and infections during the voyage. Others preferred to transport many with the claim that deaths would come both ways, and increasing the number of survivors that many have is the only way.
Once on board, the slaves were fastened to each other two by two with iron cuffs at the wrist. They were then sent down the deck and placed separately in separate male and female compartments. Conditions in the slave ships were deplorable, with a lack of health care, sanitation, food, water and fresh air. Deaths were frequent and those who were able to reach the destination were many, sometimes nearly half, of those who began the journey.
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