Slave ships were large cargo ships specially converted for the purpose of transporting
slaves, especially newly purchased African slaves to the Americas.
Atlantic slave trade Only a few decades after the discovery of
America by Europeans, demand for cheap labor to work plantations made slave-trading a profitable
business. The peak time of slave ships to the Atlantic passage was between the 18th
and 19th centuries, when large plantations developed in the British colonies of North
America. In order to achieve profit, the owners of
the ships divided their hulls into holds with little headroom, so they could transport as
many slaves as possible. Unhygienic conditions, dehydration, dysentery and scurvy led to a
high mortality rate, on average 15% and up to a third of captives. Often the ships, also
known as Guineamen, transported hundreds of slaves, who were chained tightly to plank
beds. For example, the slave ship Henrietta Marie carried about 200 slaves on the long
Middle Passage. They were confined to cargo holds with each slave chained with little
room to move. The most significant routes of the slave ships
led from the north-western and western coasts of Africa to South America and the south-east
coast of what is today the United States, and the Caribbean. As many as 20 million Africans
were transported by ship. The transportation of slaves from Africa to America was known
as the Middle Passage. Abolition of the slave trade
The African slave trade was outlawed by the United States of America and the United Kingdom
in 1807. The applicable UK act was the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act and outlawed the slave
trade throughout the British Empire. The US law took effect on January 1, 1808. After
that date all US and British slave ships leaving Africa were legally pirate vessels subject
to capture by the United States Navy or Royal Navy. In 1815, at the Council of Vienna, Spain,
Portugal, France, and the Netherlands also agreed to abolish their slave trade.
After abolition, slave ships adopted quicker, more maneuverable forms to evade capture by
naval warships, one favorite form being the Baltimore Clipper. Some had hulls fitted with
Copper sheathing. This was very expensive work that at this time was only commonly done
to Royal Navy vessels. However it increased speed by preventing the growth of marine weed
on the hull, which would otherwise cause drag. The speed of slave ships made them attractive
ships to repurpose for piracy, and also made them attractive for naval use after capture;
the USS Nightingale (1851) and HMS Black Joke (1827) were examples of such vessels.
The size of slave ships also allowed for many cannons and other guns to be placed on them.
List of slave ships
Adelaide, French slave ship, sank 1714 near Cuba.
Antelope, Spanish slave ship captured near Florida in 1820 with 283 slaves aboard, leading
to The Antelope case. Aurore, along with the Duc du Maine, the first
French slave ships that brought the first slaves to Louisiana.
La Amistad, cargo ship that sometimes carried slaves.
Braunfisch, a Brandenburgian slave ship lost in 1688 in a revolt.
Brookes, sailing in the 1780s. City of Norfolk, fitted out in New York City
by Albert Horn. Clotilde, burned and sunk at Mobile, in autumn
1859. Cora, captured by the USS Constellation in
1860. Creole, involved in the United States coastwise
slave trade and the scene of a slave rebellion in 1841, leading to the Creole case.
Desire, first American slave ship. Elisabeth, sailing from Jamaica for West Africa.
Duc du Maine, along with the Aurore, the first French slave ships that brought the first
slaves to Louisiana. Fredensborg, Danish slave ship, sank in 1768
off Tromøy in Norway, after a journey in the triangular trade. Leif Svalesen (da)
has written a book about the journey. Guerrero, Spanish slave ship wrecked in the
Florida Keys in 1827 carrying 561 Africans. Hannibal. An English slaver of the Atlantic
slave trade. Henrietta Marie. Sank 1700 near Marquesas
Keys, Florida, excavated in 1980s. Hope, American brig that brought slaves to
Rhode Island Jesus of Lübeck (de) 700-ton ship used on
the second voyage of John Hawkins to transport 400 captured Africans in 1564. Queen Elizabeth
I was his partner and rented him the vessel. Kron-Printzen, Danish slave ship, sank in
1706 with 820 slaves on board. Le Concord. Slave ship turned pirate ship
aka Queen Anne's Revenge. Sank 1717. Lord Ligonier. See Roots: The Saga of an American
Family by Alex Haley. Don Francisco. Slave ship captured in 1837.
Sold as a colonial trader renamed James Matthews. Excavated by Western Australian Museum in
1974 Madre de Deus, 1567. John Hawkins captured
this ship and transported 400 Africans. Manuela, built as clipper ship Sunny South,
captured by HMS Brisk in Mozambique Channel with over 800 slaves aboard.
Margaret Scott confiscated and sunk as part of the Stone fleet in 1862
Meermin, a Dutch East India Company ship active between southern Africa and Madagascar, whose
final voyage in 1766 ended in mutiny by the slaves: around half the crew and nearly 30
Malagasy died, and the ship was destroyed. Nightingale, clipper ship captured by Saratoga
near Cabinda, Angola in 1861 with 961 slaves aboard.
Pons, American-built barque captured by the USS Yorktown 1 December 1845 with 850-900
slaves. Salamander, Brandenburgian slave ship.
Sally, of Newport, Rhode Island - reviewed in the Report of the Brown University Steering
Committee on Slavery and Justice. Tecora, Portuguese slave ship that transported
the slaves who would later revolt aboard La Amistad.
Triton captured by the USS Constellation 1861. Trouvadore, wrecked in Turks and Caicos 1841.
193 slaves survived. Project commenced in 2004 to locate the ship.
Wanderer, formerly last slave ship to the U.S. until Clotilde reported in 1859 or 1860.
Wildfire, a barque, arrested off the Florida coast by the US Navy in 1860; carrying 450
slaves. Whydah Gally, slave ship turned into pirate
ship, sank 1717. Zong, a British slave ship infamous for the
1781 massacre of 132 sick and dying slaves who were thrown overboard in an attempt to
guarantee that the ship's owners could collect on their cargo insurance.
Note: While La Amistad is often called a slave ship, it was in fact a general-purpose cargo
ship that occasionally carried slaves. See the article about the ship, and the resulting
court case, for more information. See also
Slave ship revolts Slave trade
Slave Trade Acts Slave Coast, Gorée
Hell ship References
Further reading Baroja, Pio. Los pilotos de altura. Madrid:
Anaya. ISBN 84-667-1681-5. Rediker, Marcus. The Slave Ship: A Human History.
New York: Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-01823-9. James Walvin: The Zong. A Massacre, the Law
and the End of Slavery. Yale University Press, New Haven/London 2011. ISBN 978-0-300-12555-9
External links Paper on German Transatlantic trade, including
list of slave ships Report of the Brown University Steering Committee
on Slavery and Justice UNESCO — The Slave Route
Voyages — The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database