In the 1500s, why did the Atlantic slave trade begin?

Question

a) smallpox had wiped out a large percentage of the male population in America.

b) There was a need for labor in Spain's American Empire.

c) The American colonies needed workers on cotton and tobacco plantations.

d) Portuguese rulers wanted access to prosperous East African coastal cities.

Answer 1

Slavery was an almost immediate accurance in the Americas.

The slave were captured by black slave traders from amongst their own race. They sold these slave to anyone willing to pay in gold.

Also, the Africans were not adverse to taking slaves from the south coast of England, France, Spain or anywhere else, too.

There are current estimates that there are more than 200 million slaves in the world today. Most lsvery is in China, India and the Middle East.

You might want to do some research into modern slavery.

Kind regards

Dr Antony

Answer 2

Portuguese started the slave trade in 1502 to replace dying Native Americans in South America what is now Brazil.

a) This one one of the factors to importing Africans. So a) is Ture

The rest are all false

Some more reasons why

Native Americans knew their surroundings better than Europeans

Africans did not know the Americas hence less chance for escape

native Americans were dying in high numbers due to new exposure to European disease (Old world)

Africans had already been exposed to Old world diseases which Native Americans were not use to.

Africans had more humans in number

Africans were also very adapted to tropical climates

Answer 3

B.  

Answer 4

In the 1500s, why did the Atlantic slave trade begin?

b) There was a need for labor in Spain's American Empire.

Smallpox and other diseases new to the Amer-Indians did kill perhaps 90% of the people before 1600, but the main problem was that the American native "Indians" did not make good slaves.  Cotton and tobacco were not major crops in the 1500's.  The Portuguese already had access to African ports (there were no real cities) on the WEST coast.

Africans did make good slaves, and the trade in human slaves "made money."  In the history of mankind, any enterprise that makes money tends to prosper and grow - often irregardless of the morality or ethics involved.  One look at the Opium Wars of the 1840's and 1850's between Britain + France and China confirms this principle.  Also - current drug trade including opiates from Afghan poppies and cocaine from Columbia and of course the arms dealers of the world.  There is still a slave trade for profit as well, but not on the scale of the 1500's through 1700's between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.