Royal Navy Versus the Slave Traders: Enforcing Abolition at Sea 1808-1898

by Bernard Edwards

Overview

On 16 March 1807, the British Parliament passed The Abolition of the Slave Trade Act. In the following year the Royal Navy's African Squadron was formed, its mission to stop and search ships at sea suspected of carrying slaves from Africa to the Americas and the Middle East. With typical thoroughness, the Royal Navy went further, and took the fight to the enemy, sailing boldly up uncharted rivers and creeks to attack the barracoon's where the slaves were assembled ready for shipment. For much of its long campaign against the evil of slavery Britain's Navy fought alone and unrecognised. Its enemies were many and formidable. Ranged against it were the African chiefs, who sold their own people into slavery, the Arabs, who rode shotgun on the slave caravans to the coast, and the slave ships of the rest of the world, heavily armed, and prepared to do battle to protect their right to traffic in the forbidden black ivory. The war was long and bitter and the cost to the Royal Navy in ships and men heavy, but the result was worthy of the sacrifices made. The abolition of the slave trade led to a scramble for empires and, in place of slaves, Africa began to export cocoa, coffee, timber, palm oil, cotton and ores, all very much in demand in the West.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781399013505
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	08/26/2021
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)

About the Author

Bernard Edwards pursued a sea-going career commanding ships trading worldwide. After nearly forty years afloat. Captain Edwards settled in a tiny village in rural South Wales, to pursue his second career as a writer. His extensive knowledge of the sea and ships has enabled him to produce many authentic and eminently readable books which have received international recognition.

Table of Contents

Maps viii

Chapter 1 Family Trait 1

Chapter 2 The Beginning 8

Chapter 3 The British Slavers 21

Chapter 4 Pirates and Reformers 34

Chapter 5 Poacher Turned Gamekeeper 47

Chapter 6 Rio Pongas 63

Chapter 7 The Brief Alliance 76

Chapter 8 The Two Rivers 89

Chapter 9 Shortening the Odds 102

Chapter 10 Taking the War Inland 116

Chapter 11 The Bight of Benin 131

Chapter 12 The Lagos Expedition 145

Chapter 13 The Sultan's Domain 158

Chapter 14 The Last of the Trade 171

Epilogue 184

Bibliography 191

Index 193

Editorial Reviews

"...will be of interest to those examining British foreign policy in early Colonial Africa, the Victorian British navy and the slave trade."

The Northern Mariner