Tom

The Slave Trade
Life in Africa & the Middle Passage

Well what was life like in Africa. Africa was a peaceful, more primitive place. But when the Europeans came along they turned Africa into a place of tribal warfare. With Africans trading other Africans for guns, glass, beads, and copper. To get the slaves for the traders they would raid other tribes and villages. They would kidnap them and take them to the coast down rivers in canoes. When they got to the traders they would then receive their payment. Or the Europeans raided villages and took slaves, but this didn't happen as often.

Once onboard a ship slaves would have to live in the worst conditions possible for a human being. They would often die on the journey due to disease, malnutrition, bad sanitation, and bad air. As all of these could be spread quickly in the tightly packed bowels of the ship. but the slaves would be taken up on deck to exercise and free them of the bad stench and conditions in the ships. punishments could be inflicted on the ship, like whipping, being beaten and even death. These could be rewarded for attempted escape, revolt, not obeying or listening to the slavers.