What Was the Transatlantic Slave Trade?

SUMMARY

• The transatlantic slave trade was the enslavement and transportation to the Americas of millions of enslaved Africans by Western powers between the 16th and 19th centuries.
• Portugal and Britain were the main slave-trading nations, with other European countries also involved. The transatlantic slave trade had devastating effects on Africa, causing economic and social instability, political corruption, and the breakdown of family ties.
• The enslaved Africans and their descendants faced displacement, inequality, prejudice, and racism. Conversely, the slave-trading nations benefited economically, and the trade fueled the Industrial Revolution.

The history of humanity is checkered with the enslavement of people. The practice, which has existed for millennia, has taken many forms, such as the enslavement of people as prisoners of war following conflicts and, in some cases, due to their beliefs. Before the 15th century, subjugation based on factors such as race was rare. This is because there were limited interracial interactions. Read on to discover more about the transatlantic slave trade.

Many of the modern elements of slavery cropped up when European settlers, intent on colonizing the Americas, started to use violence to subdue indigenous populations. This was in a bid to implement forced labor. Attempts to enslave the indigenous people, however, backfired as a significant number of them started to die after enslavement. This was due to a combination of factors that included diseases and harsh labor conditions. To overcome the problem, the invading powers turned to the African continent for slaves to cater to their labor needs. Hence, the transatlantic slave trade began.

How Were Slaves Taken from Africa? 

While slavery existed in Africa even before the Europeans arrived, the demand for slaves was not high. However, the huge demand brought on by Western powers caused traders and slave agents to procure slaves far inland.

Europeans operated the slave ships while the task of kidnapping was largely left to African slave merchants. Groups of slavers roamed the country, preying on unsuspecting people. At other times, African leaders sold outcasts and people imprisoned for committing crimes to slave traders. In return, they received goods from Western countries, such as iron bars, cotton, glass, and guns.

What Were the Main Slave-Trading Nations?

In terms of volume, Portugal traded the most slaves, followed closely by Britain. Other slave-trading nations were Spain, France, the Netherlands, the United States, and Denmark. Portuguese dominated the trade in the first 130 years but were surpassed by the British after 1651. Britain became the leading slave-trading nation at the peak of the trade in the 1780s. It is estimated that between 1600 and 1800, British ships transported over 3 million Africans across the Atlantic.

That said, many Western nations that needed slaves used companies involved in the transatlantic slave trade. Countries such as Spain set up agreements (asiento) with numerous entities to supply its Caribbean and Spanish American colonies with African slaves. Nations such as the Netherlands, France, and England used a different method. They contracted their own companies to distribute slaves to their colonies. Britain’s Royal African Company and the Dutch West India Company are examples of such companies.

The slave-shipping enterprises set up operations in major ports to organize, finance, and insure slave ships. The profits generated from the trade economically transformed cities such as Bristol and Liverpool in England and Lisbon in Portugal into bustling economic centers. Each port, operated by the Western merchants, had links to slave traders in the African hinterland to ensure a constant stream of captives. 

The Transatlantic slave trade had some serious effects on the affected African regions. It greatly impaired their potential to progress economically as well as their ability to maintain a stable socio-political environment due to the continuous exploitation of human resources. This also corrupted political and social structures by encouraging the ruling class to profit from the oppression of their own people. 

Additionally, the abduction of African people who came from all walks of life broke down the family unit in the regions where the slave trade occurred. This is because some of them were breadwinners with dependents and parents. 

For slaves that were taken from Africa and their descendants, the devastation affected them for centuries to come. This is because many of them were displaced and dispersed across the Americas and Western Europe. The situation led to more Africans being spread across the diaspora.

Today, direct descendants of Africans taken as slaves continue to face many enduring socio-economic problems that include inequality, prejudice, and racism, as many of them reside in territories where they are considered a minority and non-natives. Conversely, slave-trading nations greatly benefited from the trade as it allowed them to increase the production of crops and raw materials needed to fuel the Industrial Revolution.

FAQs

When did the transatlantic slave trade start and end?

The transatlantic slave trade began in the late 15th century when Portuguese ships started transporting enslaved Africans to their colonies in the eastern Atlantic. The trade continued until the 19th century when countries such as Britain and the United States banned the slave trade between Africa and the Americas.

Who benefitted from the slave trade?

While the transatlantic slave trade ruined the lives of millions of enslaved Africans, it benefited others, such as slave traders, plantation owners, and factory owners. Slaves worked for free on the plantations, and money from the slave trade allowed rich Europeans to open factories. West African leaders were also involved in the transatlantic slave trade.

What was the “Triangular Trade”?

The “Triangular Trade” was the economic model used during the transatlantic slave trade. It involved Europe, Africa, and the Americas. Slave traders sailed from Europe to Africa, where they exchanged goods for slaves. The enslaved Africans were then sold in the Americas. Finally, slave traders brought the goods made from plantation crops (tobacco, rice, sugar, cotton, etc.) back to Europe.

Originally published: January 7, 2025. Last update: January 22, 2025, by Maria Anita Ronchini.