Friday, March 22, 2024

Taíno Caciques of Hispaniola and Columbus’ Men

The Taíno were all but erased from history within a generation of Columbus’ arrival; but before disease, violence, and slavery killed off the Taíno...

San Juan de Ulúa Battle of 1568: John Hawkins and Francis Drake

On September 16, 1568, Hawkins and Drake sailed seven ships single file toward San Juan de Ulúa with the English flag flying. Only two...

Hawkins and Drake’s Accidental Voyage to San Juan de Ulúa

Before becoming privateers for Queen Elizabeth, slave traders Hawkins and Drake took a detour to San Juan de Ulúa. The greed of John Hawkins and...

The Death of Anacaona: Executed by the Spanish at Santo Domingo

After her husband Caonabo was shipped to Spain by Christopher Columbus and her brother Behechio died, Anacaona ruled so well she was hanged for...

Economics of 16th-19th Century Pirate Recruitment on the Seas

Piracy has been in the news lately because of the problem it has generted in Somolia, but lets look at the motivations of young...

Irish Catholics Indentured in Colonial Barbados

Irish Catholics and Scots "Barbadosed" by Oliver Cromwell did not fare well as indentured servants. With both religious and political origins, Oliver Cromwell’s invasion of...

A Slave Narrative: Job Ben Solomon or Ayuba Sulaiman Ibrahim

One of many to make the Middle Passage as a slave, Job Ben Solomon was one of the few to make a return trip...

Slave Ship Captains of the Atlantic Slave Trade

Who were the men who commanded the slave ships on the Middle Passage and what exactly did they do? On the slave ship, the captain...

John Newton: Sailor to Slave Ship Captain

The man who wrote the hymn "Amazing Grace" led a colorful life before penning his famous hymn lyrics. Perhaps the best-known slave-ship captain in history...

Barbados: Indentured Servants to African Slavery

The first plantation-based society in the Caribbean, Barbados set the example for slave-based monoculture by moving from indentured servants to slave labor. Plantation societies require...