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The Atlantic System. The systems of trade connecting Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Triangular Trade Stage One: Goods to Africa. In the first stage, merchants shipped cotton goods (bought from India), weapons, and manufactured goods to Africa in exchange for slaves or gold.
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The Atlantic System The systems of trade connecting Africa, Europe, and the Americas
Triangular TradeStage One: Goods to Africa • In the first stage, merchants shipped cotton goods (bought from India), weapons, and manufactured goods to Africa in exchange for slaves or gold. • Africans vying for power (Dahomey, Ashante) used guns and luxury items to compel and cajole their way to larger territorial conquests
Stage Two: The Middle Passage • Africans were taken across the Atlantic to the Americas and sold. • Plantocracy rested on slave trade to manufacture sugar for growing consumption. • Majority to Brazil, Caribbean
Stage Three: Goods to Europe • Merchants sent the plantations’ products to Europe, where they were used to buy manufactured products to be sold in Africa. • Europe’s sea power allowed them to be the prime movers in the trading systems of the world, yielding dynamic economies and leading to sea-based Empires and power (eg: 1600s - Dutch, 17-1800s - British)
Your Turn • Break into groups of 4 • Brainstorm two questions: 5 minutes each! • Jot ideas from your group’s discussion at the bottom of your notes. If called on, be ready to discuss. • How and why were contacts between Africans and European areas different from contacts between Africans and Islamic areas? • To what extent was Africa in control of the slave trade? To what extent was Europe in control of the situation?
Discussion • In reading “Slavery and Human Society,” think about the following: • How has slavery differed in different cultures and over time? What makes African slavery in the Americas unique? • What are some main points about justifications for human slavery? • Why was the 18th century different?