The Slave Trade: Africa The Transatlantic Slave Trade in Africa

“Tools” Of Enslavement

THE BLUNDERBUSS Blunderbusses such as this one were used by slave-ship crews as deterrents to enslaved Africans. The fear that captives onboard would organize mass uprisings was ever-present. HOME Nets were put up on the sides of the ships to prevent enslaved Africans from jumping over the sides of the ship while the ship was still at anchor, or even while the ship was at sea.

Cat ‘O Nine Tails - This was a whip type object that was used for the “flogging” of the enslaved, as well as, sailors from time to time. A ”She “disobliged” the second mate, who gave her “a cut or two” with the cat-o’nine-tails. She flew into a rage at this treatment and fought back, attacking the mate {sailor}. He in turn pushed her away and lashed smartly three or four more times. Finding herself overmatched and frustrated that she could not “have her revenge of him,” she instantly sprung two or three feet on the deck, and dropped down dead.” Her body was thrown overboard about half an hour later…” - from a sailor aboard the slave ship Nightingale, ry/ Excerpt from The Slave Ship. Rediker HOME

Cowry Shells These shells were sometimes used as currency or “money” to purchase slaves. It is estimated that in the 1700s alone, Europeans traded more than 25 million pounds of cowry shells – an average of around 150,000 per slave. Africans were sold to Europeans in exchange for many different items – seashells, guns, gold, silver, copper, and rum to name a few. HOME “Captive Passage”, Smithsonian

The Coffle There were three main ways people became enslaved on the African continent. 1)a prisoner of war sold into slavery 2) being kidnapped or captured by other Africans 3) as a sentence or punishment by your own society. - The Europeans desire for more and more slaves was a huge factor in the wars, kidnappings, and “punishments.” HOME Groups of wooden coffles were used to bring the enslaved from the interior of the continent to the coast where they would be sold to Europeans. They were usually marched to some type of river or waterway where canoes would take them the rest of the way to the coast.

The Schooner The slave schooner was one type of ship anchored on the West African Coast for months at a time loading enslaved Africans into its cargo hold. The main destination for the enslaved were the continents of North and South America. The slave ships would become like a factory. The captains would deal with different slave traders over varying periods of time (sometimes weeks, sometimes close to a year). Slaves were brought to the ship and sold on the main deck. The number of slaves per sale depended on many different factors including location. There could be as few as one or as many as 20 or more people sold at once. HOME

Iron Shackles Various methods of bondage were used to control the slave “cargo” while at anchor and at sea. Neck irons, manacles, and different types of iron chains were all used for this purpose. “Under the direction of the captain and mate as well as the armorer or gunner, the sailors would hammer the cuffs into place, linking the men by twos, the left wrist and ankle of one to the right wrist and ankle of the other…Sailors would reeve a chain through their leg shackles and lock them in groups of ten to a ringbolt.” – from The Slave Ship, Rediker HOME

The Slave Castle This castle was used to ‘store’ slaves, along with ivory and gold, while they waited for slave ships to arrive and collect them. It is estimated that at least one thousand men and women were held in the dungeons at any one time. From: old.antislavery.org/breakingthesilence/slave_routes/slave_ro utes_ghana The “door of no return” at Cape Coast Castle opened up to the slave ships awaiting at anchor on the coast. This was one of the last images seen by the unfortunate enslaved before they were sold to European and American slave ship captains. Home