From Boudriot’s monograph, with his kind permission…

When colonization began in the 16th century, the American territories were primarily used as a way to supply European markets with tropical goods. Until the end of the colonization process, the plantation system was established in the new possessions. Plantations were large swaths of agricultural land that required a large workforce (for clearing fields, preparing land, planting, and harvesting). Owners decided to use a submissive, subservient workforce, which was considered best for the difficult work and the harsh weather conditions in which it was to be performed.

As a result, the slave trade was already underway in the 16th century (900,000 people), and became more widespread in the 17th (3 to 4 million) and 18th centuries (7 to 8 million). Every year, nearly 80,000 people were moved from Africa to the Americas. Transportation was organized by the major European kingdoms (France, Great Britain, Portugal, and Spain), which aided rhem in profiting from their colonial empires in South America and the Caribbean.

The slave trade took place along a triangular route in the Atlantic. Merchants would leave Europe to buy slaves in Africa (bartering them for alcohol, weapons, cloth, or assorted goods). They then continued on to the Caribbean to sell the slaves, and returned to Europe with tropical goods such as sugar, cocoa, coffee, and indigo.

The journeys lasted between 15 and 18 months, including travel time between continents as well as negotiation time in Africa, the Caribbean, and South America. Negotiations could take from a few weeks to up to 6 months at each stop, making this a very risky, unpredictable business for ship owners. A new kind of ship was called for: the slave ship.