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The rise and development
The Atlantic slave trade represents forced transoceanic transportation of men and women to the New World. Its beginning can be traced back to the early XV century and the Age of Discovery (Captivating History, 2021). After Christopher Columbus’s voyage in 1492, the Spanish “rediscovered” the Americas and, along with the Portuguese, started their first settlements on the territory of modern-day Brazil and in the Caribbean (Captivating History, 2021, p. 21). As the Europeans were conquering more of the lands in the Americas, they needed more workforce. The first slaves were transported to the Caribbean by the early 1500s (Captivating History, 2021).
Although the number of the first forcibly transported people was relatively small, it would only increase in time. There was a slight change in the development of the Atlantic slave trade in the XVI century when the British started establishing their own presence. At the time, they were not yet as powerful as other nations, so they focused on North America to avoid competitors (Captivating History, 2021). With time, the British started actively participating in the slave trade to have people working on plantations (Captivating History, 2021). Initially, England was not involved in the slave trade but grew to dominate it in the XVIII century (Captivating History, 2021).
Regardless of the American Revolutionary War, the slave trade peaked by the 1790s, and from that point until the end of slavery, the British transported almost a million Africans (Captivating History, 2021). The development of the Atlantic slave trade was impacted by the British presence in North America and their settlements.
The impact
The Atlantic slave trade impacted the creation of the colonies in the Americas as the enslaved people were used as the main labor force. Establishing the first settlements, the Spanish and the Portuguese turned to sugar as the main source of income to cover the costs of the conquests (Captivating History, 2021). The colonists were planning to use the native population, but the locals suffered a demographic collapse in the XVI century (Captivating History, 2021). Eventually, the colonists resorted to the African slaves, who were more physically capable of work, were better acquainted with agriculture and metallurgy, and were more mentally weekend than the locals (Captivating History, 2021).
The Atlantic slave trade brought a new workforce to the colonies, which became the main population in certain areas. The first settlements that would much later become the modern US were established by the British and located on the East coast. The earliest expeditions claimed regions in Virginia and nearby territories, and the first colony was in Jamestown in 1607 (Captivating History, 2021). Although slavery was not as impactful on creating the settlements in the region at first, eventually, people in the colonies segregated those enslaved and dehumanized them. This was done by creating a unified code for slavery in 1705 in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and North Carolina (Captivating History, 2021). Later, enslaved people were crucial in the development of the future southern states, where they were brought to cultivate tobacco, cotton, and rice (Captivating History, 2021). The British significantly impacted the Atlantic slave trade and laid the foundation of the modern US.
Formal ending
The formal ending of the Atlantic slave trade can be traced back to the Age of Enlightenment. The Age of Enlightenment was a time of intellectual movement, the followers of which believed in the natural rights of humans (Captivating History, 2021). People started to consider slavery as something “inhumane,” thinking that it would end only with the end of the slave trade (Captivating History, 2021, p. 109). The change towards the perception of slavery was supported by Quakers and Protestant Evangelicals, who began interpreting the Bible differently and viewing slavery as contradicting Christian ideals (Captivating History, 2021).
The cancellation of the Atlantic slave trade was impacted by those who started thinking that all people were equal and deserved freedom. The endeavors of Quakers preceded the legal end of the Atlantic slave trade. While the followers of the Age of Enlightenment were debating over the issue of slavery, the Quakers wrote petitions and formed anti-slavery societies asking governments to ban the slave trade (Captivating History, 2021). Certain US colonies and later independent states started passing laws restricting the slave trade, and Britain was preparing to forbid it as slavery was less supported by the public (Captivating History, 2021). In 1807 the British banned the slave trade, gradually forcing the same on other countries (Captivating History, 2021). The formal ending of the Atlantic slave trade followed people’s change of mind, although the complete end of slavery was far from over.
Reference
Captivating History. (2021). The Transatlantic slave trade: A captivating guide to the Atlantic slave trade and stories of the slaves that were brought to the Americas. Author.
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