MMW 13 Lecture Notes - Lecture 21: Middle Passage, Atlantic Slave Trade, Asiento
1 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Indigenous slavery
Initially allowed
•
Outlawed by the crown
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Shift to African slavery--depopulated areas, money economy
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"just war" outside core area
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Organized raids
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Stateless peoples --- non-agriculturalist ---into 19th century
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How did the Atlantic colonialism foster and perpetuate trans-Atlantic slavery?
Slavery before TA slave trade
Unfree---servant/forced laborer
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Greater chance of gaining freedom
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Legal rights not defined by racial categories
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Not necessarily separated from community or family
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Trans-Atlantic slavery
Created unprecedented proliferation of African chattel slavery
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Exploited and caused untold suffering and misery to its victims
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Influenced the political evolution of societies and kingdoms in Africa
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Atlantic System
Connected Afro-Europe with the Americans
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Movement people, goods, services, capital, and credit
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Underpinnings
Merchant capitalism commodities
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Chattel slavery -property versus personhood
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Virtues of slavery --- Christianization, benign
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Atlantic slave trade
Expands beyond Iberia --- England and Netherlands begin slaving activities
between Africa and the Antilles 1562
•
Slaves in Virginia 1619•
British asiento (the right to sell slaves) 1713•
Asiento
Royal slaving contracts --- granted monopoly trade privileges •
Subcontracted -global activity •
Piezas de India (labor units) ---healthy male teen ---1 piece•
1500-1870
1,500,000 died "middle passage"
10 to 15% die within one year of arrival
Lec 21 The Atlantic System
Wednesday, May 23, 2018
11:04 AM
