HIWD 560
SLAVE TRADE DATABASE EXERCISE TEMPLATE
1. The writer of the hymn “Amazing Grace,” John Newton, served as a slave ship captain.
Fill out the following chart on all of his voyages where he served as captain.
Vessel Name Captain Name Year Arrived
with Slaves
Principal
Region of
Slave
Purchase
Principal
Region of
Slave Landing
Duke of
Argyle
1751 Windward
Coast
Saint John
(Antigua)
African 1753 Windward
Coast
St. Kitts
African 1754 Sierra Leone St.Kitts
2. In 1732, the slave ship Diligent under Captain Pierre Mary purchased slaves from
Jacquin and transported them to Martinique.
3. For each the following queries/questions, complete the chart below. As you compile these
numbers, you will also want to review the timeline tab for the query. This can be
illuminating.
Between 1700 and 1724 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Jamaica?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
Slaves Embarked 161,416 599 270
Slaved
Disembarked 137,473 602 228
Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
74 14
Length of Middle
Passage 107 68
Percentage Male 46 67
Percentage
Children 45 19
Between 1725 and 1749 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Jamaica?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
Slaves Embarked 235,664 810 291
Slaved
Disembarked 198,454 812 244
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Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
16 23
Length of Middle
Passage 25 97
Percentage Male 5 78
Percentage
Children 6 47
Between 1750 and 1774 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Jamaica?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
Slaves Embarked 243,566 862 282
Slaved
Disembarked 205,309 863 238
Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
106 13
Length of Middle
Passage 86 82
Percentage Male 87 62
Percentage
Children 17 32
Between 1700 and 1724 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Saint-Domingue?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
Slaves Embarked 43,942 154 285
Slaved
Disembarked 36,612 154 238
Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
92 14
Length of Middle
Passage 107 73
Percentage Male 98 62
Percentage
Children 98 22
Between 1725 and 1749 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Saint-Domingue?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
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Slaves Embarked 133,814 395 339
Slaved
Disembarked 114,262 395 289
Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
120 14
Length of Middle
Passage 239 91
Percentage Male 33 71
Percentage
Children 33 16
Between 1750 and 1774 how many slaves were disembarked (principal place of
landing) in Saint-Domingue?
Total Slaves Total Voyages Average
Slaves Embarked 246,255 719 343
Slaved
Disembarked 217,154 719 302
Percentage of
Slaves Who Died
During Voyage
305 11
Length of Middle
Passage 486 84
Percentage Male 274 62
Percentage
Children 274 29
Based on the information from the previous questions (regarding the slaves disembarked
in Jamaica and Saint-Domingue), compare and contrast (in 350–450 words) the slave
trade in these areas. Your account must address factors in the Atlantic World that
may/may not have had an influence on the slave trade in these 2 Caribbean islands. You
may also include information from your assigned texts if relevant. This essay should
focus on what you do know or can figure out from the information obtained. It should not
focus on what is unknown or what questions this exercise might generate.
Jamaica and Saint Domingue both played a central role in the Atlantic Slave
trade. Cash crop production in these two Caribbean islands was the most significant
contributing factor in hundreds of thousands of African being enslaved and forces across
the Atlantic to the New World. Jamacia was originally a part of Spanish Hispaniola,
however the English launched an aggressive campaign to solidify their own influence in
the carribeans and seized Jamacia. Similarly, Saint Dominque originally part of Spanish
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HIWD 560
territory was seized by the French. Jamacia and Saint Dominque relied on sugar
plantations for the vast majority of their economy. Both islands are centrally located
making them them strategically important geogracially.
For the British, Jamacia was an important investment, however not their only colony of
important economic flow. British colonialize was diverse across the Atlantic Region.
Because of this, the total number of slaves required to maintain the palantation system
was significantly lower than that within Saint-Dominque. Sugar and Coffee production in
Saint Dominque was the largest contributor to the French and global economy. Because
of this the French prioritized the plantation systems in Saint Dominque, resulting in a
much more brutal system that required much more labor.
4. The Middle Passage is an important area of investigation for historians, yet historians
have a variety of statistics that they refer to when determining the percentage of slaves
who died during the middle passage. Some historians say that 12% died during the
Middle Passage while other historian’s state that they number is closer to a 20% mortality
rate.
Based on the information contained in the Slave Trade Database, what is the
mortality rate for slaves for the entire period of the slave trade during the Middle
Passage?
12.2%
5. Based on the Slave Trade Database, answer the following questions:
How many slaves (principal place of landing) came to Mainland North America
(total)?
305,364
What might account for the sharp rise in slave imports into Mainland North
America after 1675?
Following 1675, the American colonies became more permanently settled and
were beginning the process of shaping into the agricultural based coloninal
economies that we recognize them to be today.
How many slaves (principal place of landing) came to Brazil (total)?
3,521,975
What percentage of the total number of slaves imported into the New World (I
interpreted New World as North and South America, along with the
Caribbean and Brazil) were:
i. Male – 63.1%
ii. Female – 36.9%
iii. Children – 21.7%
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