Overview of the captives’ experience and attempts to gain freedom
The captives’ experience and enslaved Africans’ attempts to gain their freedom is the third section of The Trade in Enslaved African People (1770-1807) topic of National 5 History.
It covers the following content:
- living and working conditions on the plantations
- violent treatment of enslaved Africans
- other forms of slave labour on the Caribbean islands
- enslaved Africans’ attempts to gain their freedom
- fear of enslaved Africans’ attempts to gain their freedom
Look through this overview article for a quick guide to these areas, or to revise what you have already learned.
Click on the links to get more detailed information on each area.
Video - Life and resistance on plantations
Watch this video to find out about the work and conditions experienced by enslaved African on plantations, and how they resisted their captivity.
Find out more about the experience of enslaved African people on plantations, and how they resisted captivity.
Captured Africans who were transported to the Caribbean islands faced an ordeal just as terrible as the ocean crossing they had survived – life on the plantations.
They were quickly sold at auction, their African names and identities taken from them, and were given new ‘Christian’ names.
Any family members were split up and would probably never see each other again.
The rest of their lives would be spent labouring to produce the cash crops that kept their masters rich - coffee, tobacco, rice, cotton, and, most profitable of all – sugar.
Producing sugar was back-breaking work – ground had to be dug, planted and hoed, in scorching heat…
… and at harvest time, the sugar cane had to be crushed and boiled in sugar mills which worked night and day.
Children, old people and pregnant women were assigned to work gangs that were given slightly lighter duties…but skill had to work 12 to 18 hour days in 38 degree heat
The average time of survival for anyone arriving on a plantation was just 8 years.
The owners were aware that the harsh conditions drove their enslaved workers to an early death – but they calculated that it was cheaper to replace them when they died, than allow them to remain healthy.
Discipline was maintained by ‘slave drivers’ – enslaved workers who had earned a position of trust.
Above them were the feared ‘overseers’ – white workers, armed with knives and guns, and renowned for their brutal methods.
Captives found many ways to resist the system – sometimes with minor actions like speaking in their mother tongues, which was forbidden, or working as slowly as possible – sometimes with major actions such as sabotaging machinery or setting fire to buildings.
Plantation's enslaved workers had no rights at all.
They were subject to extreme and violent punishment for breaking the rules in minor ways – or just being suspected of doing so.
Beating, flogging, burning and rape were common forms of punishment.
Someone accused of talking too much could be forced to wear a metal mouth constraint.
For more serious misdemeanours, people were chained to a treadmill and whipped to keep it turning – or made to work the fields wearing an iron collar.
Many took their chances to escape.
That was a dangerous risk – but in Jamaica, some enslaved Africans did manage to make it to the remote mountain areas, where they formed free communities.
In the face of such inhuman treatment, captives frequently rose up.
Large scale rebellions were particularly frequent in Jamaica.
The white owner class, knowing they were outnumbered, lived in fear of mutiny.
But the odds were always against the captives - they had little hope of fighting the military forces who would be sent by ship as soon as word of a rebellion spread.
Work and working conditions on the plantations
The majority of enslaved people in the Caribbean were forced to work in the fields on sugar plantations:
- enslaved people were organised in work gangs:
- fit and strong men and women did the hardest work of digging, planting and cutting sugar cane
- less able adults fertilised cane with manure, and gathered the cut cane
- children and the elderly weeded and brought food to the other workers
They often worked long hours, sometimes from dawn to dusk for six days a week.
Work gangs were supervised by enslaved slave drivers
White overseers were in charge - they exerted brutal discipline and punishments
Plantations had sugar factories where sugar cane was crushed and the juice boiled to make sugar, rum and molasses:
- at harvest time, enslaved people worked round the clock on twelve hour shifts in extreme heat
- workers could be crushed or killed by machinery
- boiling sugar could cause horrific burns or even kill
Others worked in domestic service in the homes of plantation owners or merchants, or looking after livestock.
In ports and towns, more enslaved people worked in white people's homes. or some were skilled workers like carpenters or blacksmiths.
Find out more detail about work and working conditions on the plantations
Living conditions and how enslaved people were treated
Enslaved people were sold at two types of auction:
- at traditional auctions people were sold to the highest bidder
- at scramble auctions plantation owners would pay a flat fee and race to grab the best workforce.
Once bought, enslaved people were branded to show who 'owned' them.
Many were sent to seasoning camps where mental and physical torture was used to break their spirit and make them obedient.
Living conditions for enslaved people were hard:
- most had to build their own homes from basic materials
- they had to grow a lot of their own food on provision grounds
- they were given minimum food, often lacking essential nutrition
- one set of basic clothing was provided each year
Not working hard enough, disobedience, resistance and attempted escape were punished harshly
- enslaved people had no rights
- enslaved people could be whipped and beaten for very little reason
- attempting to escape could be punished by death
Find out more detail about living conditions and how enslaved people were treated in the Caribbean
Resistance and rebellion against enslavement
The British economy benefited from Caribbean colonies and involvement in the trade in enslaved Africans:
- Enslaved labour produced raw materials that allowed British factories to grow.
- British factory goods had large overseas markets.
- Trade in enslaved Africans made merchants rich.
- British banks provided loans and insurance to merchants involved in the trade in enslaved people.
- Trade in products made by enslaved Africans generated wealth for British ports and cities.
- Ports such as Glasgow, Liverpool and Bristol grew from small port towns to large cities due to involvement in trade in enslaved people.
- Industries such as shipbuilding grew due to the demand for ships to trade in goods related to the trade in enslaved people.
British merchants and Caribbean plantation owners joined forces and formed lobby groups to petition the UK Parliament to protect their business interests and defend the trade in enslaved Africans.
Find out more detail about resistance and rebellion against enslavement
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