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...
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...
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...
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...
The Slave Trade: Slave Ship Voyages to the West Indies
Before the Middle Passage to the West Indies, the typical slave ship spent up to a year off the coast of Africa collecting slaves.
A...
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...
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...
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...
Caribbean Christmas: Christmas Traditions in St. Kitts
St. Christopher, commonly known as St. Kitts, was originally inhabited by the Caribs before colonization by the British. The British then brought enslaved Africans...
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...