AST - The Impact of the Slave Trade
Britain
London
1663 to 1698 only port allowed to trade in African Slaves
Initial Monolpoly on trade as over 150000 Africans were carried into slavery
As other ports became involved there was an increased focus on banking to fund the trade
Insurance companies provided financial security for the trade
e.g.. Lloyds Bank, Barings Bank, Barclays Bank and The Bank of England
The 'City of London' develops
Bristol
Position on the west coast provided advantage over London
Became specialists in trading with West Africa
Marketing slaves in West Indies
Developed close relations with slave traders in West Africa, surviving for generations
Bristol was trusted more than other slave ports
Wealth created by the trade was invested into large expensive public buildings
Docks grew
New industries started - copper smelting, glass and sugar refining
Liverpool
Totally transformed the city from small insignificant to to one of the richest trading ports in the world
Huge dock created, deep waterfront meant that large ships could dock
Wealth invested into buildings
60% of all slave ships used Liverpool eventually
Other industries grew - ship building, rope making, builders, dock workers, sailors
Isle of Man served as a tax haven, avoid duty on imported goods
Other
Glasgow made great profits from the trade in tobacco and sugar
British cotton mills relied on supplies of slave produced cotton
The whole economy developed from the trades wealth and it was reinvested into industry
Africa
Having less young health people to produce food led to famine and a higher death toll
The movement of slaves and good across Africa helped improve transport networks to the coast
If there had been no slave trade the population of Africa in 1850 would've been 50 million instead of 25 million
Atlantic slavery improved farming, but only to provide to slave ships rather than the local population
However research suggests 6 million died in the process of getting to the West Indies
Diseases were spread as thousands of people were moved around Africa
Estimated that European ships carried 12 million people from Africa to the Americas
Increased conflict between tribes, as enslavement became an excuse to start wars and conflict
Caribbean
Native people of Caribbean (Arawaks) were wiped out and replaced by West Africans
West Africans outnumbered white population 20 to 1
Slave Codes supported slavery and punishments and banned slave culture, music, gatherings
Economy of the islands solely relied on the production of sugar, any fall in the international price was disastrous for the island
Left the islands with a a sense of injustice, still relevant today
A cause of world racism