The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
One of the worst atrocities of humanity is the
“Middle Passage” - the horrific transport of
enslaved people across the Atlantic Ocean to
their destination of servitude. One of the most
...
The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
One of the worst atrocities of humanity is the
“Middle Passage” - the horrific transport of
enslaved people across the Atlantic Ocean to
their destination of servitude. One of the most
important things we can do is remember the
indignities suffered by the enslaved, and
continue to educate others about the
voyages.
When historians research something like the
slave trade, there is a lot to consider. It’s an
economic, social, political and cultural issue.
They utilize charts, graphs, maps, logs, ship
records, diaries, letters, reports of captains
and crew members, and eyewitness accounts
of enslaved people who experienced the
“Middle Passage” to make conclusions about
the Slave Trade. You will be exploring the
draw a conclusion about the effect
that event may have had on the slave
trade.
may have has on the slave trade was increased import of slaves to
Brazil to gain more riches and maybe the masters might go there
themselves to get some and/or make sure the slaves couldn’t get as
much as them.
Now head to the Database part of the website: https://slavevoyages.org/voyage/database
● We will do two sample searches for information together so that you understand how to use the site. ☺
Then you’ll do the following searches on your own.
In which year did the most slaves arrive in Barbados?
● Refine the search by selecting a variable from the top. It makes the most sense to
select, under “Itinerary,” “Place where voyage ended.”
● Now we have to select Barbados. And check to see that it narrowed it to 5 voyages!
So if we look to the right, we see the year arrived with slaves, and how many slaves
were on that boat. So what is the answer?
1711
What country had the boat that carried the most slaves in the Middle Passage?
● Refine the search by choosing “Enslaved.” Now refine it further by selecting “landing
numbers.”
● Use the drop-down menu to choose “is at least” - and make a guess. Then hit enter. If
it’s not enough… we’ll add numbers until we narrow the voyages to one!
New Bedford
How many slave ships were taken over by Africans? About 12 million
How many voyages had slave rebellions (insurrections)? 250 slave
rebellions.
Now make two of your own questions and answer them using the database! (Cannot be too simplistic, you must use
the variables to find this information!)
Question 1: Was the civil rights act caused by all the slave rebellions in 1865? Answer: Yes. The slaves
even served in
the civil war.
Question 2: how many slaves were transported through 1865 (when it was
abolished by the US) to 1866 ( when it was abolished by everyone)?
Answer: 3142 in total,
877 in 1866,
and 2265 in
1865.
Look at the “Estimates” portion of the website: https://slavevoyages.org/assessment/estimates
How many slaves did voyages owned by the United States bring from Africa to the USA during
the course of its history?
305,326
Great Britain abolished the trans-atlantic slave trade in 1808. How many slaves were shipped by
Great Britain AFTER they had officially abolished it in 1808, until 1866, when the slave trade
ended?
9,306
The United States ALSO abolished the trans-atlantic slave trade in 1808. How many slaves were
shipped by the United States AFTER they had officially abolished it in 1808, until 1866?
13,151
How many total slaves were shipped between 1700 and 1800, and which country shipped the
MOST slaves in that same period?
6,548,192
Great Britain
Make one overall observation about the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade based on all of your searches today: (5pts)
The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade was a very violent and dehumanizing thing that ended up cutting a lot of lives
probably in half in not even shorter.
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