Cover/Title Page

Candidate’s name: -

Candidate’s Registration number: - 1

Name of school: -

School Centre number: -

Title of the study: - How significantly was West Africa negatively affected by her

involvement in the transatlantic slave trade up to the 1840s?

Name of the teacher: -

Year of examination: -
Frontispiece Page

Candidate’s name: -

Candidate’s Registration number: -

Name of school: -

School Centre number: -

Title of the study: - How significantly was West Africa negatively affected by her involvement

in the transatlantic slave trade up to the 1840s?

Name of the teacher: -

Year of examination: -
Acknowledgement Page
First of all, I would like to thank my teacher, Miss Johnson, for guiding me throughout this entire

study and correcting me along the way. Her constructive criticism is much appreciated. Without

it, this project would have been a shadow of what it is now.

I would also like to thank the internet who made all the resources that I needed available and

easily accessible through the push of a few keys, a press of a button, and a few clicks. It has

played a crucial role in the completion of my SBA.

Lastly, I would like to thank God for granting me the health and strength to carry out my

research and the determination to continue even when the future of the project looked quite

despondent.

Content Page

Table of Contents

Rationale V

Introduction VI

Body/Project Pages VII

Conclusion VIII
Bibliography IX

Appendix X

Rationale

The researcher would like to know how significantly West Africa was negatively

affected by her involvement in the transatlantic slave trade up to the 1840s because

the individual would like to expand his knowledge base. Additionally, doing this

research will help the individual to narrow his scope in terms of finding the most

unique and/or important themes that fit best with the project and its goals.

Moreover, doing this research will build the credibility of the individual, opening a
 doorway of trust between him and his audience, allowing the researcher to build a

solid foundation on which ideas and opinions can be formulated. As was

previously mentioned, research can help the researcher to formulate his own ideas

and opinions, but it can also introduce the individual to entertain new ideas and

perhaps persuade the individual to take a closer look at his ideas. In conclusion,

research will encourage the individual’s curiosity and will allow him to open up

to different opinions and new ideas, building discerning and analytical skills while

being rewarded with better health and increase in positivity levels in a place of

growth.

Introduction
The most important change occurred as a result of the sugar revolution was a need for a large

amount of skilled labour that was not available in the West Indies. The first source of labour

which Europeans experimented with was that of the Amerindians. Under the Encomienda

System, many natives lost their lives. The genocide of these indigenous peoples meant that

Europeans were forced to seek alternative sources of labour. They turned to the indentureship

system. Poor whites were attracted to West Indian plantations to perform manual labour. They
too proved unsuccessful as these indentured servants were unaccustomed to plantation life. As a

result, another source was necessary.

The main religion practised by Europeans during this period was Christianity. Europeans were

predominantly Roman Catholics. The British however were Anglicans. Europeans believed it

was their God- Given duty to convert non- Christians. Europeans believed Africans/blacks were

made to be slaves. Bartholomew de las casas suggested the use of African slaves. Slavery

already existed in Africa. Persons were made slaves for debts, punishment, crimes, marriages

etc., making it easy to access the large numbers required. Europeans felt that they were not

introducing anything new into Africa so there was nothing wrong with what they were doing.

To great significance West Africa was negatively affected by her involvement in the

transatlantic slave trade up to the 1840s. The transatlantic slave trade was essentially a

triangular route from Europe to Africa, to the Americas and back to Europe. On the first leg,

merchants exported goods to Africa in return for enslaved Africans, gold, ivory and spices. The

ships then travelled across the Atlantic to the American colonies where the Africans were sold

for sugar, tobacco, cotton and other produce. The Africans were sold as slaves to work on

plantations and as domestics. The goods were then transported to Europe. There was also

two-way trade between Europe and Africa, Europe and the Americas and between Africa and

the Americas. There were six main effects the Transatlantic Slave Trade had on West Africa:

the rich got richer, famine, destruction of traditional cultures, increased warfare, social impact

of slavery and warlords were in control.

The slave trade had serious negative social, economic and political effects upon West Africa.

The social effects included the following: (i) Many millions of strong and youthful men and

women were forcibly removed from Africa during this trade, (ii) Members of the ruling classes
such as kings, chiefs and rich merchants who became slave dealers exploited the common

people, (iii) There was the disruption of families with single parents, and without the

accustomed support system, (iv) It led to a general feeling of insecurity in African societies,

which caused people to abandon their homes and relocate to be more secure from the threat of

slave raids, (v) It contributed to the erosion of African moral values such as brotherhood and

community spirit. Certain religious institutions were warped to complement the needs of the

trade and therefore, became debased. (vii) Often, there was the distorted use of oracles, and the

growing incidence of human sacrifice, as unsold or undesirable captives were often sacrificed.

Body/Project Pages

Many African chiefs became rich from the trade. Some used the profits from the trade to expand

their kingdom. One such group was Benin. Some chiefs charged taxes for the coffles to pass

through their area. With this money they were able to develop their territory. Other chiefs

concentrated on the slave trade and the profits to be had from it rather than their politica duties.

Homes were literally destroyed by fire during the raids. The raiders took the young and strong

people. These represented the backbone of the economy- the labour force. Needless to say,

production declined, particularly in the short run until they were able to start all over again.

Additionally, guns and ammunition that were trade items for slaves gave extra security to one

group but provided the means for them to raid another group.

There was increased distrust among neighbours and even friends. Local production and crafts
such as pottery and brass work decreased. Firstly, many skilled people were taken. Secondly,

with the influx of European consumer goods that were exchanged for slaves, there was an

increase in taste and the demand for these goods. They were now viewed as better than the local

products.

The economic effects of the Slave Trade on West Africa included the following: (i) The slave

trade resulted in West Africa exporting its most valuable raw material, that is, human labour,

(ii) This led to the decline in agriculture, owing to the devastation of land during slave raids and

wars, the capture of farmers, and the abandonment, by farmers, of agriculture in favour of

slaving, (iii) The trade robbed the country of skilled craftsmen, (iv) It helped to ruin the

livelihood of those craftsmen who remained, for example, ironworkers and weavers, as African

merchants imported the same goods that these people made, for example cloth, iron pots and

hoes.

Conclusion

African tribes exchanged captive Africans with Europe slave traders, who transported them to

the Americans under inhumane conditions. Majority of West African slaves were prisoners of

wars waged by rulers seeking foreign merchandise that cemented alliances, sustained armies,

and increased their power significantly. In conclusion, the slave trade had devastating effects in

Africa. Economic incentives for warlords and tribes to engage in the slave trade promoted an

atmosphere of lawlessness and violence. Depopulation and a continuing fear of captivity made

economic and agricultural development almost impossible throughout much of western Africa.
Bibliography

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oLem4JB2wYRAeBDedNdyvjOWlmn4FHLw4xbeTxHy
-xE/edit
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/british-transatlant
ic-slave-trade-records/
https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/atlantic-slave-trade-from-west-central-africa-178018
67/conclusion/52BEE1387FB70AB80597FCE70A3B63C9
(Hamilton-Willie, Doris, Caribbean Economy and Slavery)
Appendix

Britain was one of the most successful slave-trading countries. Together with Portugal, the two

countries accounted for about 70% of all Africans transported to the Americas. Britain was the

most dominant between 1640 and 1807 and it is estimated that Britain transported 3.1 million

Africans (of whom 2.7 million arrived) to the British colonies in the Caribbean, North and South

America and to other countries.

Anti-slavery campaigners lobbied for twenty years to end the trade and the Abolition of the

Slave Trade Act was passed in Britain on 25 March 1807. It was declared that from the 1 May

1807 ‘all manner of dealing and reading in the purchase, sale, barter, or transfer of slaves or of

persons intending to be sold, transferred, used, or dealt with as slaves, practiced or carried in, at,

or from any part of the coast or countries of Africa shall be abolished, prohibited and declared to

be unlawful’. Slavery was abolished in 1834 but in reality for many of those enslaved it

continued until at least 1838 through apprenticehip schemes.