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1442
Portugal enslaves the Berbers
Portugal was the first country on the scene of the slave trade due to the many trading posts they set up on the coast of Africa and in the West Indies. In 1442 the Portuguese started to enslave the Berbers which are from West Africa. The main client of Portugal at the time was Brazil or islands in the Caribbean which they used the Berber slaves to maintain mainly sugar plantations. -
1448
Portugal makes profitable slave-trading agreements with Moorish and African chiefs
Portugal’s slave-trading agreements with the Moorish and African chiefs allowed Portugal to access slaves easier and marked the beginning of a multi-continental trade because Africa is now actively participating in the trade by providing slaves in exchange for gunpowder. -
1482
Portuguese build the first slave-trade post at Elmina, Gold Coast
In 1482 Fort São Jorge da Mina was built by the Portuguese in order to not only be a basecamp for the Portuguese slave trade but to protect their interest against the Dutch. The town where the fort was located was offered protection by the Portuguese. Elmina also became independent under the order of the Portuguese -
1502
New World slavery of Africans begins in Hispaniola
The island of Hispaniola originally used natives found on the island as slaves, however, due to European diseases such as smallpox the natives quickly died leaving the Spanish to search for a new source of labor. The Spanish needed slaves to work on sugar plantations on the island of Hispaniola because it became such a lucrative business for the Spanish. The work on sugar plantations was often exhausting and many slaves died due to overexertion or malnourishment. -
1542
New Laws of 1542 discourage enslaving natives in the West Indies and the market for importing enslaved Africans begins to grow
The New Laws of 1542 also known as the New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of Indians was a set of laws declared by Charles V in 1542. In this statement, he discouraged the use of the encomienda system. This made many Spaniards who used to use the encomedia system to turn to the slave trade for a free labor source. -
1562
John Hawkins commands the first English slave-trading expedition
John Hawkins was a merchant who became the first Englishman to join the slave trade. In 1562 he carried slaves from Guinea to the Spanish West Indies’. This caused conflict between Hawkins and the Spanish because they didn’t authorize their colonies to trade with other countries. However, this opened a new doorway for Britain to join the slave trade and provide slaves to their own colonies. -
King Louis XIII authorizes French involvement in the triangular slave trade
In 1642 Louis XIII declared that he wanted to join the slave trade in order to save the souls of Africans. During this time period, Africans were seen as barbarians and it was the duty of the white men to civilize them. This was one of the core reasons why many European nations chose to enslave Africans however there were also financial motivations to join. By joining the Slave trade France would be able to supply slaves to their colonies by not depending on other nations to do so. -
The Royal African Company is founded
The Royal African Company was founded by the Stuart family and The City of London Merchants. The Royal African Company became the main slave trade company for Britain and shipped more slaves to the Americas than any other institution. -
Colony for former slaves established in Sierra Leone, Africa
In 1787 380 freed slaves arrived in Sierra Leone. They were able to acquire territory to start the Providence of Freedom. They acquired land from Chiefs of the West African Tenme ethnic group. However, over time there arises conflict over the land that the freed slaves acquired ruining their idea of living in a utopian society. -
British Parliament abolishes the transatlantic slave trade
In the 1780s British citizens began to hear about the horrors of slavery, this created a mass movement towards the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. In 1807 Parliament finally passed the Slave Trade Act prohibiting slave trade within the British Empire.
