The slave trade

• Enslaved people


  • Seen as the property of the owner to do with as he wished
  • Could be killed or raped without consequence
• Punishments on plantations


  1. Whipped

  2. Had to live in horrible conditions

  3. Mistreated and not cared for

  4. Women very mistreated and taken advantage of by plantation owners

  5. Beheaded if they tried to rebel

  6. Placed in isolation
• Plantations were large areas of land that could produce exports like tobacco and cotton
• How people benefited from the slave trade

  • Factory owners could sell more goods as people grew richer
  • Weapons factories sold more weapons to slave ships
  • Government could increase taxes on products made through slavery
  • Banks gained money by offering loans to people who wanted to move to the Caribbean to start plantations
  • Cities like Liverpool and Bristol grew in size dramatically because of slave ships
  • Royals invested money in the slave trade to increase their own wealth
  • Universities received donations from the slave traders
• Different types of slavery


  • Child slavery
  • Forced prostitution
  • Penal labour
  • Human trafficking
  • Chattel slavery
• Child slavery


  Forcing a young person into work often in industry or in the military
• Forced prostitution


  Forcing someone often girls or women into prostitution (engaged in sexual activity for money)
• Penal labour


  Forcing someone to work for no or minimal payment as punishment for a crime
• Human trafficking


  Transporting someone illegally across countries or regions with intention for forcing them into labour
• Chattel slavery


  Making someone into property meaning they are bought and sold by others and they suffer no longer treated as an independent human
• The middle passage


  1. Transported slaves from Africa to America

  2. Slaves crammed into large boats built to carry 200 people but instead often carried up to 600 people

  3. Slaves lay cramp on lower decks of ships, shackled together

  4. Shackles not removed for the entire journey

  5. Caused disease such as dysentery, scurvy, yellow fever, malaria and diarrhoea

  6. Slave captains threw ill or dead slaves off the ship

  7. Ships extremely hot and damp due to small and cramped size, causing intolerable stench

  8. Slaves given very little food

  9. No toilet facilities

  10. Many slaves refused to eat in hopes of death, many committed suicide
• The first leg


  From Europe to Africa, transporting manufactured goods like guns, ammunition, textiles, rugs, alcoholic drinks
• The third leg


  From America to Europe, exporting tobacco, sugar, rice, and some surviving slaves
• Slave auctions


  1. Slaves arrived starving, bruised, injured, traumatised, sleep deprived, and with extremely bad mental health

  2. Auctioneers would wash and clean up the slaves to make them more presentable and appealing to the plantation owners

  3. Slaves were branded with a hot iron

  4. Two types: sold to the highest bidder, or 'grab and go'
• Abolitionist


  Someone who is anti-slavery, part of the abolition movement to rise up against the institution of slavery
• The abolition movement united people from many different walks of life such as politicians, ex-slaves, and religious groups to rise up against the slave movement
• Slavery affected cities like London and Bath by supplying factory-made goods in exchange for enslaved people, allowing people to grow rich with large plantations, and enabling the growth of the economy and population