What Is the Middle Passage?
- Broad Overview of the Middle Passage. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, 12.4 million Africans were enslaved by Europeans and transported to various countries in the Americas.
- The Transatlantic Journey. ...
- Resistance by Enslaved People. ...
- Impact and End of the Middle Passage. ...
- Sources. ...
What was the Middle Passage really like?
The Middle Passage was the stage of the triangular trade in which millions of Africans were forcibly transported to the New World as part of the Atlantic slave trade. Ships departed Europe for African markets with manufactured goods, which were traded for purchased or kidnapped Africans, who were transported across the Atlantic as slaves; the enslaved Africans were then sold or traded for raw materials, which would be transported back to Europe to complete the voyage. The First Passage was the t
What was the historical significance of the Middle Passage?
What Is the Middle Passage?
- Broad Overview of the Middle Passage. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, 12.4 million Africans were enslaved by Europeans and transported to various countries in the Americas.
- The Transatlantic Journey. ...
- Resistance by Enslaved People. ...
- Impact and End of the Middle Passage. ...
- Sources. ...
What was the main reason for the Middle Passage?
Causes of the The Middle Passage The causes of The Middle Passage were there was a shortage of workers in the Americas and European plantation owners needed many laborers to work their large plantations. First planters would use Native American as workers but European diseases had killed millions of them.
What was the horrors of the Middle Passage?
The Horrors of the Middle Passage. In 1441, Antam Goncalvez, a Portuguese sailor, seized ten Africans near Cape Bojador. According to Azurara, the Portuguese chronicler, Goncalvez was to sail along the western shore of Africa, not to try for new discoveries but to prove his worth by shipping a cargo of skins and the oil of ‘sea wolves’ (sea ...
What is the Middle Passage and why is it important?
The "middle passage," which brought the slaves from West Africa to the West Indies, might take three weeks. Unfavorable weather conditions could make the trip much longer. The Transatlantic (Triangular) Trade involved many continents, a lot of money, some cargo and sugar, and millions of African slaves.
What is the best definition of the Middle Passage?
Definition of Middle Passage : the forced voyage of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas.
What is Middle Passage in American history?
Crossing the Atlantic in the hold of a slave ship, or slaver, was a horrific ordeal. Perhaps one third of the captives perished on this journey, known as the Middle Passage—the middle leg of a three-part trade in slaves and goods between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
What was the Middle Passage Why is it so important to the history of the United States?
The Middle Passage was the stage of the Atlantic slave trade in which millions of enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas as part of the triangular slave trade.
What is an example of Middle Passage?
Middle Passage, the forced voyage of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World.
What was the Middle Passage quizlet?
Middle Passage refers to the travel of slaves from Africa to America. During the passage, about 15% of the slaves died; about 1 million died in all. Slaves were fed one meal per day, were shackled together, and stacked like wood. The Middle Passage was part of the Triangular Trade.
What are three facts about the Middle Passage?
CrampedEnslaved people were chained and movement was restricted.Enslaved people were unable to go to the toilet and had to lie in their own filth. Sickness quickly spread.Enslaved people were all chained together. ... The state of the hold would quickly become unbearable – dark, stuffy and stinking.
When was the Middle Passage ended?
In 1807, England became the first nation to abolish the African slave trade, but not even the mutiny aboard the slave ship Amistad in 1839 could put an end to the Middle Passage until the American Civil War came to a close in 1865.
Who first started slavery in Africa?
Slavery in northern Africa dates back to ancient Egypt. The New Kingdom (1558–1080 BC) brought in large numbers of slaves as prisoners of war up the Nile valley and used them for domestic and supervised labour. Ptolemaic Egypt (305 BC–30 BC) used both land and sea routes to bring slaves in.
What is the triangular trade simple definition?
Definition of triangular trade : multilateral trade in which country A's purchases from country B are paid for by earnings from country A's sales to country C.
When did the African Diaspora start?
The African Diaspora – History and Definition The term “African Diaspora” first appeared in the literature in the 1950s and has been broadly defined to include all global communities descended from the historic migrations of peoples from Africa since the 15th century [3,4].
What is chattel slavery?
Traditional or Chattel Slavery Such chattel slaves are used for their labor, sex, and breeding, and they are exchanged for camels, trucks, guns and money. Children of chattel slaves remain the property of their master.
What was the Middle Passage?
The Middle Passage was the second leg of the triangular trade of enslaved people that went from Europe to Africa, Africa to the Americas, and then back to Europe. Millions of Africans were packed tightly onto ships bound for the Americas.
Why did the British inspect the Middle Passage?
In the late 18th century, British abolitionists began inspecting the ships and publicizing details of the Middle Passage in order to alert the public to the horrific conditions aboard and gain support for their cause.
How many Africans were enslaved during the Middle Passage?
Broad Overview of the Middle Passage. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, 12.4 million Africans were enslaved by Europeans and transported to various countries in the Americas. The Middle Passage was the middle stop of the "triangular trade": European ships would first sail to the western coast of Africa to trade a variety ...
How many slaves survived the Middle Passage?
Roughly 15% of enslaved people didn't survive the Middle Passage. Their bodies were thrown overboard.
How long did the Captives stay in the hold of the ship?
They were kept in the hold of the ship for 16 hours a day and brought above deck for 8 hours, weather permitting.
What was the Middle Passage?
The Middle Passage was the stage of the triangular trade in which millions of West Africans were forcibly transported to the New World as part of the Atlantic slave trade. Ships departed Europe for West African markets ...
What were the main contributors to the death toll of the passage?
Disease and starvation due to the length of the passage were the main contributors to the death toll with amoebic dysentery and scurvy causing the majority of deaths. Additionally, outbreaks of smallpox, syphilis, measles, and other diseases spread rapidly in the close-quarter compartments.
What was the Transoceanic segment of the Atlantic slave trade?
Transoceanic segment of the Atlantic slave trade. Commercial goods from Europe were shipped to Africa for sale and traded for enslaved Africans. Africans were in turn brought to the regions depicted in blue, in what became known as the "Middle Passage". Enslaved Africans were then traded for raw materials, which were returned to Europe ...
What were the proceeds from the sale of the enslaved Africans used for?
The proceeds from sale of the enslaved Africans were then used to buy hides, tobacco, sugar, rum, and raw materials, which would be transported back to northern Europe (third side of the triangle) to complete the triangle.
What side of the triangle did the slave ship go on?
Special slave ships transported the human cargo, in wretched conditions, males and females separated, across the Atlantic (second side of the triangle). Mortality was high; those with strong bodies survived. Young females were raped by the crew.
How long did it take to cross the Atlantic?
The duration of the transatlantic voyage varied widely, from one to six months depending on weather conditions. The journey became more efficient over the centuries; while an average transatlantic journey of the early 16th century lasted several months, by the 19th century the crossing often required fewer than six weeks.
When we found ourselves at last taken away, death was more preferable than life?
When we found ourselves at last taken away, death was more preferable than life, and a plan was concerted amongst us, that we might burn and blow up the ship, and to perish all together in the flames.
What was the middle passage?
Perhaps one third of the captives perished on this journey, known as the Middle Passage—the middle leg of a three-part trade in slaves and goods between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
When did the British abolish the slave trade?
Great Britain abolished its slave trade in 1807 and used its naval power to discourage other nations from the trade. In 1845 a British sailor painted this image of enslaved Africans below decks of the Brazilian slave ship Albanez (or Albaroz ). The British sloop Albatross captured the slaver with 300 Africans aboard in March of that year.
How long did the Middle Passage last?
The Middle Passage itself lasted roughly 80 days, on ships ranging from small schooners to massive, purpose-built "slave ships.". Humans were packed together on or below decks without space to sit up or move around. Without ventilation or sufficient water, about 15% grew sick and died.
Where was the cradle of liberty?
Image by Supportstorm. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Boston's "Cradle of Liberty" is only steps from sites where enslaved Africans were bought and sold after traveling the Middle Passage from West Africa to North America.
What was the first slave trade?
Boston was part of this global story. The first slave trade voyage from the American colonies sailed out of Massachusetts. The ship Desire left Salem in 1637, carrying Native American captives from the Pequot War to be sold as slaves in the Caribbean. When it returned with the first known Africans imported into the northern English colonies, Boston was its most likely port of return. It is estimated that 166 transatlantic voyages embarked out of Boston. Local newspapers carried over 1,000 ads for the sale of slaves during the 18 th century, which took place everywhere from ships to markets, warehouses, coffee houses, and homes. Boston was further complicit in the Triangle Trade as a major exporter of rum, which was made from sugar produced in the Caribbean and sometimes sold in exchange for slaves in Africa. Ironically, commodities like sugar and molasses drove colonial Bostonians to revolution: leaders likened taxation on these goods to slavery even as the trade continued to prop up slavery itself.
How many Africans were transported across the Atlantic?
From the 16 th to the 19 th centuries, approximately 12 million Africans were transported across the Atlantic as human property. The most common routes formed what is now known as the "Triangle Trade" connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
When did the United States ban the transatlantic slave trade?
In 1808, Britain and the United States agreed to ban the transatlantic slave trade. Slavery itself flourished in the United States until the Civil War, becoming the defining issue of national political life.
What happened to the wrists and elbows on the Middle Passage?
Elbows and wrists will be scraped to the bone by the motion of the rough seas. Some will die of disease, some of starvation, and some simply of despair. This was the fate of millions of West Africans across three and a half centuries of the slave trade on the voyage known as the "middle passage.".
How many men and women were forced beneath deck into the bowels of the slave ship?
Two by two the men and women were forced beneath deck into the bowels of the slave ship.
What are the two philosophies that dominated the loading of a slave ship?
Two philosophies dominated the loading of a slave ship. " Loose packing " provided for fewer slaves per ship in the hopes that a greater percentage of the cargo would arrive alive. " Tight packing " captains believed that more slaves, despite higher casualties, would yield a greater profit at the trading block.
How many Africans were on the upper deck of a slave ship?
This illustration depicts what one reporter saw on the upper deck of a slave ship — "about four hundred and fifty native Africans, in a sitting or squatting posture, the most of them having their knees elevated so as to form a resting place for their heads and arms."
How long did it take for the slaves to get to the West Indies?
The " middle passage ," which brought the slaves from West Africa to the West Indies, might take three weeks. Unfavorable weather conditions could make the trip much longer.
Broad Overview of The Middle Passage
The Transatlantic Journey
- Each ship carried several hundred people, about 15% of whom died during the journey. Their bodies were thrown overboard and often eaten by sharks. Captives were fed twice a day and expected to exercise, often forced to dance while in shackles (and usually shackled to another person), in order to arrive in good condition for sale. They were kept in the hold of the ship for 1…
Resistance by Enslaved People
- There is evidence that up to 10% of these ships experienced violent resistance or insurrections by enslaved people. Many committed suicide by jumping overboard and others went on hunger strikes. Those who rebelled were punished cruelly, subjected to forced eating or whipped publicly (to set an example for others) with a "cat-o'-nine-tails (a whip of nine knotted cords attached to …
Impact and End of The Middle Passage
- Enslaved people came from many different ethnic groups and spoke diverse languages. However, once they were shackled together on the ships and arrived in the American ports, they were given English (or Spanish or French) names. Their distinct ethnic identities (Igbo, Kongo, Wolof, Dahomey) were erased, as they were transformed into simply "Black" or "enslaved" people. In th…
Sources
- Rediker, Marcus. The Slave Ship: A Human History. New York: Penguin Books, 2007.
- Miller, Joseph C. "The Transatlantic Slave Trade." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 2018, https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Transatlantic_Slave_Trade_The
- Wolfe, Brendan. "Slave Ships and the Middle Passage." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 2018, https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/slave_ships_and_…
- Rediker, Marcus. The Slave Ship: A Human History. New York: Penguin Books, 2007.
- Miller, Joseph C. "The Transatlantic Slave Trade." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 2018, https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Transatlantic_Slave_Trade_The
- Wolfe, Brendan. "Slave Ships and the Middle Passage." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 2018, https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/slave_ships_and_the_middle_passage
