slavery of the world

Slaves in Rome: from the second century BC The same loophole, offered by the self-esteem of free citizens, provides even greater opportunities to slaves in imperial Rome. The most privileged slaves are the secretarial staff of the emperor. But these are the exception. In the two centuries before the beginning of the empire (the last two centuries BC) slaves are employed by Romans more widely than ever before and probably with greater brutality. In the mines they are whipped into continuing effort by overseers; in the fields they work in chain gangs; in the public arenas they are forced to engage in terrifying combat as gladiators. There are several slave uprisings in these two centuries, the most famous of them led by  Spartacus .

Slaves in Babylon: 18th century BC Information about slaves in early societies relates mainly to their legal status, which is essentially that of an object - part of the owner's valuable property. The  Code of Hammurabi , from  Babylon  in the 18th century BC, gives chilling details of the different  Rewards and penalties  for surgeons operating on free men or slaves. But it also reveals that the system is not one of unmitigated brutality. Surprisingly, Babylonian slaves are themselves allowed to own property. But the first civilization in which we know a great deal about the role of slaves is that of ancient Greece. Slaves in Greece: from the 7th century BC Both the leading states of Greece -  Sparta  and Athens - depend entirely upon forced labour, though the system in Sparta is more properly described as serfdom rather than slavery. The distinction is that the helots of Sparta are a conquered people, living on their own hereditary land but forced to work it for their Spartan ma

The Portuguese slave trade: 15th - 17th century The  Portuguese expeditions of the 15th century bring European ships for the first time into regular contact with sub-Saharan Africa. This region has long been the source of slaves for the route through the Sahara to the Mediterranean. The arrival of the Portuguese opens up another channel. Nature even provides a new collection point for this human cargo. The volcanic Cape Verde Islands, with their rocky and forbidding coastlines, are uninhabited. But they contain lush tropical valleys. And they are well placed on the sea routes between West Africa, Europe and America. Portuguese settlers move into the Cape Verde islands in about 1460. In 1466 they are given an economic advantage which guarantees their prosperity. They are granted a monopoly of a new slave trade. On the coast of Guinea the Portuguese are now setting up trading stations to buy captive Africans. Some of these slaves are used to work the settlers' estates in the Cape Ve

Slaves captured or purchased in the African interior were often held in confinement for months before they finally arrived at the coast. Some of these people had been wounded in battles, and others like the European sailors, often caught these ailments. John Taylor, the captain of the Henrietta Marie's second voyage, was not spared the threat of disease and was ill or dying before the ship left Africa, re-exposed to smallpox, yellow fever, and other deadly diseases.The mortality rate during the Middle Passage was high for slaves and crew alike, averaging between thirteen and thirtythree percent. The likelihood of contagion, however was strongest for the Africans. Common hazards of the voyage, stemming from no other source than poor diet and close confinement, included scurvy and gangrene. Dehydration, caused by lack of drinking water and high loss of bodily fluids from fevers or dysentery, was a primary killer aboard the slaving vessels. Symptoms included melancholy and a loss

As Liverpool grew , so the towns and cities that were close to the port also grew . For example , cotton was shipped through Liverpool . From here it was sent to the new factories of nearby Lancashire where  it was spun and woven creating thousands of jobs for  working-class families there . The wages that these families earned enabled people to enjoy some of the new pleasures in life , like chocolate and sugar .

About this Item Title Death of Capt. Ferrer, the Captain of the AMISTAD, July 1839 Summary African slaves killing Ramon Ferrer with cane knives; Don Jose Ruiz and Don Pedro Montez, the slave owners, look on in horror. Created / Published 1969. The  Amistad  Rebellion. In July, 1839, captive West Africans rebelled and took over the Spanish slaveship  Amistad . They ordered the owners to sail to Africa but, instead, the  Amistad  was taken on a meandering course, finally waylaid by a U.S. Navy brig. The Africans were charged with the murder of the captain and jailed in New Haven, Connecticut. Aolitionists came to their support; ex-President John Quincy Adams represented them in court. After a long legal battle, the Supreme Court freed the "mutineers" in 1841. The following year they returned to Africa.