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The Transatlantic

Slave Trade

KWL Char t Par t I

Please write in your charts the

following:

Column 1: What you already know about the Transatlantic Slave

Trade

Column 2: And what you want to know

**Remember you will be turning this

chart in at the end of the lesson!!

Objectives

From this lesson I expect you to afterwards:

• During classroom lecture and the talking head activity, being open and

respectful when learning about a sensitive topic by not writing offensive

language on their projects.

• Explain and interpret the perspectives of the Africans and Europeans

who engaged with one another in Africa in the Transatlantic Slave

Trade by filling out a talking head diagram of the perspectives of both

parties, using sources discussed in class.

During the perspectives talking head activity, learn how to make claims

based on evidence by using all the thoughts you come up with from the

sources provided to support a central claim that answers the big idea

question of “How does one justify enslaving another human being?”

Inquiry Question

How does one justify

enslaving another

human being?

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How did the

Transatlantic slave

trade begin?

Why did Europeans

choose Africans?

Origins of the

Transatlantic Slave Trade

• Before the Transatlantic Slave Trade, slavery had already existed for centuries

in many parts of the world.

• This includes slavery preexisting in many parts of Africa.

• In Africa, slavery was practiced more as a form of serfdom.

• Slaves were traded when one:

• Owed tribute

• As prisoners of war

• Slaves though were often a part of one’s family, taking a family’s name or

marriage into the family.

• Was not the brutal imagery we usually think of today.

• Begins in 1441, with the Age of Exploration— the Portuguese, not Columbus!

• African and Middle Eastern science and technology were central.

• Portuguese explore west coast of Africa, looking for Asia.

• Eventually other European ethnic groups explore and participate in trade with Africa.

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Why did Africans sell

slaves to Europeans?

Were they “selling

their own people?”

Growth of the Trade

• When the Europeans arrived in Africa, they were introduced to the preexisting African slave trade.

• Africans sold their slaves in return for European and Asian goods. • Such as: weapons, spices, alcohol, etc.

• Europeans had a demand for slaves because the demand for plantation

workers in their New World colonies.

• Market continued to expand, increasing a market for slaves. • Caused ethnic groups in Africa to raid one another for slaves to sell

to the Europeans. • Africans did not sell slaves from their own ethnic group, usually

from rival ethnic group.

• The Transatlantic Slave Trade began close to the coasts, where the

European ships were, but many of the African slaves came from places

more inland and were forced to travel thousands of miles to the coast

to be sold to the Europeans.

The river were many slaves

were washed before being sold

to the Europeans

*30 miles from the coast

Cape Coast Castle,

Ghana

Castle built by

Portuguese during the

15th century on the Gold

Coast for protection,

lodging, and storage of

trade items, including

slaves.

Slave exports from Africa

1450-1600 376,000 3.1%

1601-1700 1,868,000 16.0

1701-1800 6,133,000 52.4**

1801-1900 3,330,000 28.5

Total 11,698,000

**This is also the century that most Americans can trace their African ancestors to.

Now lastly:

Go back to your KWL Charts and fill in

the last column.

What new information did you learn

from this lesson about the

Transatlantic Slave Trade?