The Sacking of Havana 1762: British Cuba and 1000 Slaves

The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History · May 15, 2026 · 7m · transcript

In 1762, during the Seven Years' War, a British expedition force of over 12,000 men descended on Havana, the pearl of the Spanish Caribbean. After a two-month siege, the city fell, and British occupation lasted nearly a year. But this episode goes beyond the military campaign to a hidden chapter: the massive influx of enslaved Africans brought by the British to rebuild Havana's fortifications and plant sugar. We explore how the British used captured Spanish ships to import over 1,000 slaves from Jamaica and Africa, laying the groundwork for Cuba's explosive sugar boom. We meet…