WEEK 6: BRITAIN, DAHOMEY, AND THE ENDING OF THE ATLANTIC SLAVE

TRADE (1783)

 1807 - British parliament outlawed/banned the slave trade, which had been in
existence since 1510 and resulted in around 12 million Africans being forcibly
shipped to the Americas.
 Given its long history, coupled with the fact that the British were the most complicit
in the Trade by the eighteenth-century, the parliamentary abolition of the Slave
Trade has been the focus of a number of historical debates.
 A set of voices that was ignored - those who opposed the abolition of the Slave
Trade
 In 1783, a ship's surgeon Dalzel, wrote a history of a West African state called
'Dahomey.'
 Dalzel told of a brutal kingdom in which human sacrifices were nearly routine and
warfare was endemic.
 Abolitionist lobby in the United Kingdom argued that the Atlantic Slave Trade caused
these kinds of wars in Africa as war captives were frequently sold as slaves.
 However, Dalzel's account contradicts this thesis as Agonglo (Adahoonzou) argued
that there were a number of other causes of war in Dahomey.
 Does Dalzel's History tells us more about the state of abolition debates in England
than about Dahomey itself.

Questions
 Were African kings responsible for the enslavement of Africans?
 Why did the kings of Dahomey resort to human sacrifice?

HISTORY OF DAHOMY

 Dahomey - African kingdom – 1600-1894.

 By the master’s command – that those through age, wounds or infirmities who could
not march should be put to death on the spot.
 Ordered to cut off the prisoners’ heads
 Some boys were just 7 or 8 and could not even manage such a weapon, the tortures
they had suffered
 The inhuman treatments of the enemies taken in. war has ruined the records of all
nations
 Attempts to imitate this kind of cruelty – Greece and Rome have more examples to
justify the practises in Africa and America
 Prisoners of war are the property of the victor
 Will dispose of them as best suits with his own interests and those of his country
 Viewed as those who have disturbed. The nations peace, invaded its rights,
murdered its protectors
  The men who are killing may suffer at the idea of depriving his fellow creature and
shudder at the idea of depriving him of life, but he will not hesitate to remove them
for his own safety in whatever way is the most effectual.
 When self-preservation is the motive it cannot be called cruelty
 The most general ways of disposing of captives is by death or transportation

 Ransom, exchange, liberty on parole – system that has more variety of

considerations and more civilisation – expected in nations like Dahomy
 People would laugh at the idea of giving the enemies a second chance attempt to
offend again
 They either sell those who will move into another country or when there is no
demand for them they put them to death.
 The European necessity for labourers – not much so the lives of those unfortunate
were. Saved.

The reigns of Whydah Kings

 Their prisoners were sold
 Human sacrifices were rare and inconsiderable
 Dahomey – war took the lead of commerce and so human sacrifices were frequent
and often numerous
 America – traffic of this kind was not known
 Wars – were situated for the. Very purpose of obtaining victims
 In Mexico – in one temple, it lasted 4 days where they had sacrificed 46,008
captives.

Dahomey
 No ships in the road
 The factories plundered in the onset and burnt afterwards
 Factors taken prisoners then released
 But the prisoners were still in fright and confusion
 Prisoners increasing and became expensive and alarming

 Trudo - Custom of his country needed acknowledgement to the gods for his
victories.
 Adahoonzou speech – upon hearing what had happened in England upon the forfeit
of the slave trade

 The king’s speech – there’s a difference between the Englishmen as they are
surrounded by the ocean and have communication with the whole world which they
do by the ships.
 but Dahomans are placed on a large continent and are hemmed with. A variety of
different people, all speaking different languages and so need to defend themselves
from incursions and wars. So, by saying that they go to war for the purpose of
supplying your ships with slaves, they are mistaken.