MMW 13 Chapter Reading: Beginning of the African Slave Trade
6 May 2018
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The people of the African coast recognized the Portuguese as slave raiders and would
run from them or try to defend themselves if they were cornered. The Portuguese were ruthless
and didn’t shy away from killing people if they needed to during these raids. In one raid
described, they captured 165 people and killed the rest. They went to raid another island, but
found people before they got there who warned the people of the island and then those people
abandoned the island. They loaded these people onto boats and took them to Lagos. The
people that were taken weren’t used to riding for a long time on ships and became extremely
sick. Some died on the voyage. When they got to Lagos, they were put on land at the behest of
one of the captains who didn’t want more to die. They were put on land and then divided into
five groups before the Prince, because the Prince was entitled to a fifth of the slaves that were
captured on any trip. The slaves were already downcast and some were even crying, once they
were separated they were were bawling and wailing. People were crying, mothers were taking
beatings to try and avoid being separated from their children. The children were crying and the
men and the women. Some onlookers also cried. The Prince gave away his fifth to some of the
lords because he wasn’t in it for the profit of the slaves, he was in the business to help save the
souls of the unsaved (Christians). All the slaves were forced to convert.
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