Shows / The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Atlantic slave trade was not a single enterprise but a centuries-long, globe-spanning system that transformed economies, cultures, and human lives across Africa, the Americas, and Europe. This show examines the trade from its 15th-century origins under Portuguese and Spanish colonization through its peak in the 18th century and its eventual abolition in the 19th century. Lucas and Luna guide listeners through the brutal Middle Passage, the rise of plantation economies in Brazil, the…
Episodes
The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo HistoryThe 1839 Amistad Revolt: Africans Who Won Their Freedom in Court
In 1839, fifty-three Africans aboard the Spanish schooner La Amistad staged a desperate revolt, killing the captain and taking control of the ship. They…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Haitian Indemnity: France's Price for Freedom
In 1825, France sent a fleet of warships to Haiti and demanded a huge payment in exchange for recognizing Haitian independence. Lucas and Luna dive into the…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Gold Coast Castles: Forts That Held the Atlantic Slave Trade
Lucas and Luna explore a corner of the Atlantic slave trade that the main revolt narratives rarely touch: the European-built castles and forts along…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Haiti's Indemnity: The Price of Freedom
In 1825, France demanded Haiti pay 150 million francs for its independence—a debt that crippled the nation for over a century. This episode explores the story…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Slave Trade's Bankers: How London Insured the Middle Passage
We often picture slave ships leaving African ports with captains like Luke Collingwood calling the shots. But behind those voyages stood a far more invisible…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1823 Demerara Slave Revolt: Missionaries and Martyrdom
In August 1823, a massive slave revolt erupted in the British colony of Demerara (modern-day Guyana), involving over 10,000 enslaved people. Unlike many…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1791 Haitian Revolution Begins: Bois Caïman Ceremony
In August 1791, on a humid night in the forests of Saint-Domingue, a Vodou ceremony at a place called Bois Caïman ignited the largest slave revolt in the…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Bussa's Rebellion: Barbados 1816 and the Fight for Freedom
When news of the failed abolition bill in Britain reached Barbados in 1816, the island's enslaved population rose in the largest slave revolt in Barbadian…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1761 Slave Revolt on the Schooner Sandwich: Jamaica's Christmas Uprising That Never Was
In 1761, a planned slave revolt across Jamaica's parishes was betrayed before it could begin. This episode follows the conspiracy through the testimonies…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1791 Haitian Revolution Begins: Vodou Ceremony at Bois Caïman
This episode of The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering steps back from the well-known revolts of the 19th century to explore the opening act…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Galley Slave Who Forged a Rebel Army: Benkos Biohó's War
Before Toussaint, before Nat Turner, an African prince turned galley slave named Benkos Biohó led the most durable maroon rebellion in the Americas. In the…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1787 British Settlement of Sierra Leone
In 1787, a small fleet of ships carrying hundreds of Black Loyalists, poor whites, and freed slaves from London set sail for West Africa. Their destination: a…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1792 Danish Ban: Europe's First Slave Trade Abolition
In 1792, Denmark-Norway became the first European power to outlaw the transatlantic slave trade — but the ban didn't take effect for a decade. In this…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Cuban Cimarrones: Maroon Communities of the Slave Era
Before the Aponte Rebellion and long after, enslaved Africans in Cuba escaped bondage to form autonomous settlements known as palenques. This episode traces…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1838 Brazilian Quilombo of Manoel Congo
In 1838, a slave revolt in Brazil's coffee-growing Paraíba Valley led to the formation of a short-lived quilombo led by Manoel Congo, a literate…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Abolitionist Who Infiltrated a Slave Ship: James Field Stanfield
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the little-known story of James Field Stanfield — a former sailor turned abolitionist who published the first detailed…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Middle Passage: Below Decks on a Slave Ship
In this episode of The Atlantic Slave Trade, Lucas and Luna descend into the hellish reality of the Middle Passage. Drawing on slave ship logs, surgeon's…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1781 Zong Massacre: Insurance Fraud and the Calculus of Cruelty
In this episode of The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering, Lucas and Luna examine the 1781 Zong massacre — not as a random act of brutality…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Man Who Sank the Atlantic Slave Trade: Granville Sharp
How did a mild-mannered London clerk with no legal training bring down the legal pillars of Atlantic slavery? This episode follows Granville Sharp, the…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Slave Ship Creole: 1841 Coastwise Revolt and Freedom
In November 1841, the American slave ship Creole departed Richmond, Virginia, bound for New Orleans with 135 enslaved people aboard. Off the coast of North…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1831 Sam Sharpe Rebellion: Jamaica's Christmas Uprising
In December 1831, a 25,000-strong enslaved workforce in Jamaica's western parishes rose up in what became the largest slave rebellion in the British…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1822 Denmark Vesey Conspiracy: Charleston's Fear
In 1822, an enslaved carpenter named Denmark Vesey, who had purchased his freedom, was accused of orchestrating a massive slave rebellion in Charleston, South…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1739 Stono Rebellion: South Carolina's Bloodiest Slave Revolt
On September 9, 1739, a group of about twenty enslaved Africans gathered near the Stono River in South Carolina, twenty miles from Charleston. Led by a man…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1831 Nat Turner Rebellion: Enslaved Prophet's Revolt
In August 1831, an enslaved preacher named Nat Turner led a rebellion in Southampton County, Virginia, that became one of the bloodiest and most consequential…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1839 Amistad Revolt: Slavers, Abolitionists, and the Supreme Court
In 1839, fifty-three Africans held captive on the Cuban slave schooner La Amistad rose up, killed the captain, and seized control of the ship, setting off a…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Olaudah Equiano: From Captive to Abolitionist Voice
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the extraordinary life of Olaudah Equiano, who was kidnapped from his Igbo village in West Africa as a child, survived…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1817 Negro Fort Massacre: America's Largest Slave Revolt Plot
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the little-known story of the Negro Fort, a British-built fortress in Spanish Florida that became a refuge for hundreds…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1823 Demerara Slave Revolt: Led by a Deacon
In August 1823, a massive slave revolt erupted in the British colony of Demerara (now Guyana). Unlike many uprisings, it was led not by a military commander…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1807 Abolition Act: Britain Outlaws the Slave Trade
In 1807, after decades of activism, tragedy, and political maneuvering, the British Parliament voted to abolish the transatlantic slave trade. This episode…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1812 Aponte Rebellion: Cuba's Unsung Slave Revolt
In 1812, Cuba's largest slave conspiracy came to light. This episode uncovers the Aponte Rebellion, named after its leader José Antonio Aponte, a free…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1791 Haitian Revolution Outbreak: Bois Caïman Ceremony
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the opening chapter of the Haitian Revolution, the only successful slave revolt that created an independent Black…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1688 Germantown Protest: The First American Anti-Slavery Petition
Four German Quakers in a small Pennsylvania town drafted the first known public protest against slavery in the American colonies in 1688. This episode explores…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Transatlantic Slave Trade: The Hidden Role of African Kingdoms
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the complex and often overlooked role that African kingdoms played in the transatlantic slave trade. They delve into…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1816 Bussa Rebellion: Barbados's Largest Slave Revolt
In April 1816, enslaved Africans on the Caribbean island of Barbados rose up in what became known as the Bussa Rebellion, the island's largest and most…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1791 Haitian Revolution Outbreak: Bois Caïman and the First Fires
Lucas and Luna dive into the explosive opening of the Haitian Revolution, focusing on the August 1791 slave uprising in the northern plain of Saint-Domingue…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Asiento: Britain's License to Traffic in Human Beings
In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht granted Britain the asiento — a monopoly contract to supply enslaved Africans to Spain's American colonies. This episode…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1713 Asiento: Britain's License to Traffic in Human Beings
In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht ended the War of the Spanish Succession and granted Britain a unique prize: the asiento, a monopoly contract to supply enslaved…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Slave Trade in the Indian Ocean: Forgotten Captivity
While the Atlantic slave trade dominates popular memory, the Indian Ocean slave trade transported millions of Africans across the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1696 Portuguese Slave Ship 'Santo António' and Its Captives' Revolt
In 1696, the Portuguese slave ship Santo António left Luanda, Angola, bound for Brazil with over 400 enslaved Africans. But days into the Middle Passage, a…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1794 Capture of the Vengeance: French Slave Ship Rebellion
In 1794, the French slave ship Vengeance set sail from Ouidah, carrying over 300 enslaved Africans. But off the coast of Saint-Domingue, the captives rose up…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Middle Passage: A Ship Surgeon's Grisly Logbook
Lucas and Luna take a deep dive into the harrowing day-to-day reality of the Middle Passage through the eyes of a British ship surgeon. Drawing on the 1788…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Slave Trade's Diet: What Enslaved Africans Ate on the Middle Passage
What did enslaved Africans actually eat during the Middle Passage? This episode of The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering dives into the…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
Cape Coast Castle: The Door of No Return
Lucas and Luna explore Cape Coast Castle, the brutal epicenter of the Atlantic slave trade on Ghana's Gold Coast. They trace its origins as a Swedish…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1733 Slave Revolt: Akwamu Rebels on St. John
In 1733, enslaved Akwamu warriors from the Gold Coast seized control of the Danish island of St. John for six months. This episode follows the revolt from its…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Danish Slave Trade: A Small Empire's Big Role
When we think of the Atlantic slave trade, we think of Britain, France, Portugal, Spain. But what about Denmark? For over a century, the Danish West India…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1763 Tacky's War: Jamaica's Great Slave Revolt
In 1763, the island of Jamaica became the stage for one of the most determined slave rebellions in British colonial history. Tacky, an Akan-speaking overseer…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Atlantic Slave Trade: The 1794 Capture of the Vengeance and the French Slave Ship Rebellion
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a lesser-known but dramatic episode of the Atlantic slave trade: the 1794 capture of the French slave ship Vengeance by…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1719 Capture of the Burla: Portugal's Hidden Slave Trade
In 1719, the British privateer John Hawkins intercepted a Portuguese slave ship named Burla off the coast of Angola. This episode dives into the Burla's…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1693 Capture of the Princesa: A Portuguese Slave Ship's Last Voyage
In 1693, the Portuguese slave ship Princesa set sail from Angola bound for Brazil with over 500 enslaved Africans crammed into its hold. But the ship never…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1807 Abolition Act: Britain Outlaws the Slave Trade
In 1807, after decades of tireless campaigning by abolitionists like Thomas Clarkson and William Wilberforce, Britain outlawed the transatlantic slave trade…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1839 L'Amistad Rebellion: Africans in a Connecticut Court
In 1839, fifty-three Africans aboard the schooner L'Amistad rebelled against their captors, sparking a legal battle that reached the U.S. Supreme Court…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1811 German Coast Uprising: Louisiana's Largest Slave Revolt
In January 1811, the largest slave revolt in US history erupted along the Mississippi River in the Territory of Orleans. Led by Charles Deslondes, a mixed-race…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Royal African Company: A Corporation of Slavers
This episode dives into the history of the Royal African Company, the English corporation that held a monopoly on the West African slave trade for decades…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Clotilda: Last Slave Ship and the Legacy of Africatown
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the story of the Clotilda, the last known slave ship to bring enslaved Africans to the United States, which illegally…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Zong Massacre: Insurance Fraud and 132 Slaves Thrown Overboard
In 1781, the captain of the British slave ship Zong ordered 132 enslaved Africans thrown overboard to claim insurance money. This episode examines the legal…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Haitian Revolution: Enslaved People Who Defeated Three Empires
The Haitian Revolution is the only successful slave revolt in history, but how much do you know about the strategy, diplomacy, and leadership that made it…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 18th-Century Slave Trade in the Indian Ocean
While the Atlantic slave trade is well-known, the enslavement of Africans in the Indian Ocean world was equally brutal and spanned centuries. This episode…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering – Episode 100
In our 100th episode, we mark the milestone not with a recap but with a focused look at a single devastating year: 1781. That year saw the Zong massacre, but…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1839 L'Amistad Rebellion: Africans in a Connecticut Court
In 1839, 53 Africans held captive on the schooner La Amistad rose up, killed the captain and cook, and seized the ship. Their leader, Sengbe Pieh, known as…
- The Atlantic Slave Trade: Empire Built on Human Suffering — Fexingo History
The 1840 Amistad Captives: West African Voices in a Connecticut Court
In 1839, fifty-three captives from the Mende region of West Africa were taken aboard the schooner Amistad off the coast of Cuba. Led by a man named Sengbe Pieh…