Voices from the Transatlantic Slave Trade

In the 18th century, when the trafficking of Africans was at its height, Britain was the world's leading slave trader. It is estimated that some 3.5 million Africans were transported across the Atlantic in British ships in that period. However, as the life histories of Olaudah Equiano and others show, there were thousands of slaves in London and in towns and cities throughout Britain. This was certainly the case in the centuries before 1807; Mary Prince being just one example of the many enslaved Africans held in London after 1807. In Britain's colonies in Africa, slaves were still to be found in some areas right up to the first decades of the 20th century...

To listen to these testimonies follow the links...

Read Full Essay
Download PDF
Further Resources

Mary Prince

Olaudah Equiano

Voices from Contemporary Human Trafficking and Forced Labour