The Impact of African Slave Trading - Essay Example

The Impact of African Slave Trading Much controversy surrounds the subject of the impact of the transatlantic slave trade on Africa. As an underdeveloped continent, Africa faces a major hurdle in terms of the global economy; this is historically linked to the slave trade crutch. It is impossible to think of Africa’s economics and not consider slave trade as a driving force. While not the only economic means for Africans in earlier centuries, it was the primary mode of trade. Traditionally held belief is that the slave trade hindered African economic development. Theoretically, when the Africans could simply travel a short distance to another tribe and capture slaves to sell, there was no need to develop alternative methods of economic gain. Thornton argues that while the slave trade was encouraged by the European market, war was not waged merely for the collection of slaves but rather for political means. In other words, the slaves were a by product of wars that would have been fought regardless. There was an established slave trade market before the development of the Atlantic trading routes. “At the beginning, at least, Europeans were only tapping existing slave markets” (Thornton 98). Africans accepted the use of slavery in their own societies and the use of trading of slaves as private property. It was common practice for the different tribes to seize captives from other tribes and force them into slavery, or sell them for monetary profit. While traditionalists would argue that the trading of slaves compelled Africans to wage wars that otherwise might not have been waged; the idea of capturing more slaves to sell for political and economic gains encouraged warring between the tribes. Thornton cites the example of the Ndongo war, which lasted from 1625 until 1655 in countering the traditionally held ideal that wars were strictly economical (Thornton 101). This war was fought over succession to the throne of Ndongo (Thornton 100) and can account for many of the Angolan slaves captured during this time (Thronton 101). “Such wars, however, may well have been waged solely in order to acquire slaves even without the demands of Atlantic traders” (Thornton 102). Thornton believes war and slavery were an accepted way of life in Africa, and as such would have continued without the European influence. However this is one simple example that does not explain the reasoning behind the multitude of other wars in Africa. He mentions that motives might appear to be economical when indeed they are political, but it seems impossible to believe that the knowledge of demand for slaves would not have affected the leader’s decisions in initiating war with economic gain in mind. While Thornton does acknowledge that there was a boost in the slavery market due to the European influence, he does not seem to acknowledge the depth of change the demand of the European traders must have had. It seems that with such a large demand for slaves, it would profoundly influence the economics of the African tribes. It would be exhaustive to attempt to catalog the actual number of slaves taken from Africa over such a long time period but we are able to look at isolated instances that illuminate the effects of the slave trade. An Italian priest, Marcellino d`Atri was in a war zone in Africa in 1702 and noted that the adult, especially the male civilian population was often stripped from whole areas (Thornton 306). A tribe lacking in it’s adult population shows the extent of the slave trading. This tribe was at war and likely their adults (specifically males) were missing – likely either pressed into military service or captured and sold. Also, with the invasion of the Asante in 1718, “the invaders brought back no fewer than twenty thousand women and children for sale, in addition to the men” (Thornton 309). That vast number of captured slaves had to go somewhere. It would be ludicrous to think that the capture of a quantity that large was not influenced by the knowledge of the demand of European slave trade. Otherwise, why capture such a large number? While they had other means of trade, slavery was the easiest and least intensive to produce. Thornton argues that in early Atlantic trade, Europe did not provide anything to Africa that Africa did not already produce (Thornton 44). The primary goods imported were cloth, metal goods, and cowry shells (used for currency), jewelry, and alcoholic beverages (Thornton 45) all of which Africa was able to produce. Therefore “Africa’s trade with Europe was largely moved by prestige, fancy, changing taste, and a desire for variety” (Thornton 45) rather than necessity. In other words, Africans were trading in the beginning for luxury items, not necessities. Africans also exported many goods other than slaves including textiles, cloth, beads, ivory spoons, horns and saltcellars. African steel was superior in quality but difficulties in production meant that much European steel was imported. In short, slaves were easier. While Thornton makes the argument that Africa had at it’s disposal the same initial materials as the Europeans, he nowhere allows for the fact that Europeans didn’t have the same materials as the Africans. Europeans were not capturing and selling people as slaves; for this they were dependant on Africa. Thus, Europeans were forced to develop their manufacturing in order to obtain the slaves needed and Africans were persuaded to provide the slaves in return for manufactured or raw goods. Africans were in this way hampered by the slavery crutch; if it’s easier and readily available and then demand is there, why not use slavery as a basis for their economy. Furthered by the fact that slaves were relatively easy to obtain, Africans became overly dependant on the slave trade. This constant state of war necessary to obtain slaves prevented Africans from experiencing the progress of peaceful times. With peace comes progress as the Africans would not have been so engrossed in battle and defense they could have turned their focus to invention and advancement. However, with the warring they were unable to devote their attention to better development of the other economic means available. It is interesting to note, as did Thornton that Africans had a means for making better and stronger steel, but lacking the necessary trees for wood they instead traded slaves for steel from the Europeans (Thornton 46). Granted, not all steel that they used was procured from European traders, but it did make it considerably easier for them to obtain what they could have been forced to create. If necessity is the mother of invention, the Africans did have an economic disability in that they could simply capture slaves and sell them for any other good created in Europe instead thereby negating the necessity to provide goods for themselves. The long-range result of this dependence on slavery as the primary means of economic growth is evidenced threefold. First, a large portion of the population is missing. Some of the members of African tribes who would have been valuable contributions are lost either to war or slavery, thus the economy is at a population deficit. Secondly, the manufacturing sector of Africa was never developed as there was no necessity. Africa is again at a deficit because they have not been forced to develop a solid economic alternative. Lastly, the slavery trade eventually dwindled leaving Africa with no economic product to trade for the goods it had failed to develop. In conclusion, there were extensive damages done to the African economy by the relative ease of the slave trade. Thornton argues that the Europeans did not influence the African economy as much as traditionally thought and provided some worthwhile examples. However, his examples do not fully support the entire breadth of the problem specifically the three long range effects of the slave trade; missing members of society, underdevelopment of alternative economic resources, and the effect of the end of the slave trade. These three examples form the core of the explanation as to why Africa is still an underdeveloped land today, existing much as it did in the late 1800’s, the absence of the slave trade seems to have stalled the economy of Africa. Bibliography Thornton, John "Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1800" Cambridge University Press, 1998 Read More