Should	
  1807	
  *really*	
  be	
  celebrated	
  as	
  the	
  end	
  of	
  the	
  slave	
  trade?	
  
An	
  investigation	
  into	
  the	
  West	
  Africa	
  Squadron	
  and	
  the	
  illicit	
  slave	
  trade	
  after	
  1807.	
  
	
  

## Background	
  Information

With	
  the	
  abolition	
  of	
  the	
  British	
  slave	
  trade	
  in	
  1807,	
  it	
  was	
  assumed	
  by	
  many	
  abolitionists that	
  slavery	
  itself	
  would	
  soon	
  die	
  out	
  in	
  the	
  Americas.	
  	
  However,	
  as	
  early	
  as	
  1810	
  it	
  had become	
  clear	
  that	
  such	
  hopes	
  were	
  misplaced.	
  	
  Not	
  only	
  did	
  slavery	
  continue	
  to	
  thrive	
  in	
  the colonies,	
  but	
  a	
  widespread	
  illicit	
  trade	
  had	
  developed	
  in	
  defiance	
  of	
  the	
  1807	
  Act.	
  	
  In	
  fact,	
  it has	
  been	
  estimated	
  that	
  up	
  to	
  a	
  quarter	
  of	
  enslaved	
  Africans	
  were	
  carried	
  to	
  the	
  Americas after	
  1807	
  (Lewis-­‐Jones	
  2010). Abolitionists	
  themselves	
  admitted	
  that	
  they	
  had	
  seriously	
  underestimated	
  the	
  difficulties	
  in stopping	
  abuses	
  of	
  the	
  ban	
  by	
  British	
  traders,	
  and	
  very	
  little	
  had	
  been	
  achieved	
  in	
  terms	
  of curtailing	
  foreign	
  slave	
  trading	
  (Jordan	
  2005:	
  162).	
  	
  At	
  the	
  Treaty	
  of	
  Vienna	
  in	
  1815,	
  the British	
  ceded	
  to	
  French	
  demands	
  for	
  the	
  continuation	
  of	
  their	
  slave	
  trade,	
  and	
  they	
  were not	
  able	
  to	
  reach	
  a	
  cessation	
  agreement	
  with	
  the	
  Spanish	
  until	
  1817	
  (but	
  only	
  North	
  of	
  the Equator)	
  and	
  with	
  the	
  Dutch	
  in	
  1818.	
  	
  Brazil	
  did	
  not	
  outlaw	
  her	
  trade	
  until	
  1851,	
  and	
  Cuba was	
  still	
  buying	
  and	
  selling	
  slaves	
  until	
  the	
  1860s.	
  	
  Not	
  only	
  did	
  slave	
  ships	
  continue	
  to	
  sail under	
  foreign	
  colours,	
  but	
  British	
  ships	
  also	
  impersonated	
  them	
  in	
  order	
  to	
  avoid	
  capture, such	
  as	
  the	
  English	
  ship	
  "Prince	
  William"	
  which	
  was	
  found	
  to	
  be	
  displaying	
  the	
  name "Marquis	
  Romana"	
  while	
  carrying	
  109	
  slaves	
  in	
  an	
  attempt	
  to	
  pass	
  as	
  Spanish	
  (Jordan	
  2005: 164). From	
  1807,	
  the	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  made	
  attempts	
  to	
  intercept	
  illegal	
  slave	
  ships,	
  but	
  with	
  only	
  five vessels	
  by	
  1811,	
  their	
  success	
  was	
  severely	
  limited.	
  	
  It	
  was	
  not	
  until	
  1815	
  that	
  the	
  West Africa	
  Squadron	
  was	
  established	
  as	
  a	
  preventative	
  force,	
  and	
  even	
  with	
  this	
  development naval	
  ships	
  were	
  often	
  too	
  old	
  and	
  slow	
  to	
  catch	
  slave	
  ships.	
  	
  By	
  the	
  1850s,	
  however,	
  there were	
  twenty-­‐five	
  ships	
  and	
  two	
  thousand	
  sailors	
  on	
  the	
  West	
  Africa	
  station,	
  supported	
  by	
  a thousand	
  African	
  sailors,	
  making	
  the	
  enforcement	
  of	
  the	
  1807	
  Act	
  much	
  more	
  effective (Lewis-­‐Jones	
  2010).	
  	
  Between	
  1807	
  and	
  1860,	
  the	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  West	
  Africa	
  Squadron	
  seized more	
  than	
  1500	
  slave	
  ships	
  and	
  emancipated	
  150,000	
  Africans. Ships	
  seized	
  on	
  the	
  route	
  of	
  the	
  'Middle	
  Passage'	
  or	
  on	
  the	
  West	
  African	
  coast	
  were escorted	
  to	
  the	
  Vice	
  Admiralty	
  Court	
  of	
  Mixed	
  Commission	
  at	
  Sierra	
  Leone,	
  where,	
  if condemned,	
  the	
  slaves	
  were	
  registered	
  as	
  'emancipated'	
  and	
  often	
  put	
  to	
  work	
  as apprentices	
  or	
  domestic	
  servants	
  (Jordan	
  2005:	
  144).	
  	
  Under	
  an	
  Act	
  of	
  1814,	
  condemned ships	
  could	
  then	
  be	
  registered	
  under	
  British	
  colours,	
  and	
  join	
  the	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  Squadron. The	
  *Henriqueta* The	
  slave	
  ship	
  *Henriqueta*	
  provides	
  an	
  excellent	
  case	
  study	
  of	
  both	
  the	
  illicit	
  slave	
  trade	
  after 1807,	
  and	
  British	
  attempts	
  to	
  control	
  this	
  trade. Between	
  1824	
  and	
  1827,	
  she	
  carried	
  out	
  at	
  least	
  ten	
  voyages	
  between	
  Bahia	
  in	
  South-­‐East Brazil	
  and	
  West	
  Africa,	
  trading	
  in	
  total	
  more	
  than	
  2500	
  slaves.	
  	
  She	
  has	
  been	
  described	
  as "one	
  of	
  the	
  most	
  important	
  vessels	
  operating	
  in	
  the	
  1820s	
  during	
  the	
  era	
  of	
  illegal	
  slave trading"	
  (Tinnie	
  2008).	
  	
  Her	
  owner,	
  the	
  Brazilian	
  Jose	
  de	
  Cerquiera	
  Lima,	
  was	
  well	
  known	
  as a	
  slave	
  trader,	
  and	
  owned	
  at	
  least	
  16	
  other	
  slave	
  ships. The	
  *Henriqueta's*	
  first	
  brush	
  with	
  the	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  came	
  in	
  1824	
  when	
  she	
  was	
  apprehended and	
  taken	
  to	
  the	
  Court	
  of	
  Mixed	
  Commission	
  in	
  Sierra	
  Leone.	
  	
  However,	
  having	
  no	
  slaves	
  on board,	
  she	
  was	
  restored	
  to	
  her	
  owner	
  (www.slavevoyages.org).	
  She	
  then	
  made	
  repeated voyages	
  between	
  Brazil	
  and	
  West	
  Africa	
  under	
  the	
  command	
  of	
  her	
  captain	
  Joao	
  Cardoso dos	
  Santos,	
  until	
  September	
  1827	
  when	
  she	
  was	
  again	
  apprehended	
  by	
  the	
  West	
  Africa Squadron. The	
  *Henriqueta*	
  left	
  Bahia	
  in	
  August	
  1827	
  on	
  her	
  final	
  slaving	
  journey	
  in	
  possession	
  of	
  a passport	
  which	
  granted	
  her	
  permission	
  to	
  trade	
  at	
  "the	
  Ports	
  of	
  Cabinda	
  on	
  the	
  Occidental coast	
  of	
  Africa"	
  on	
  the	
  condition	
  that	
  she	
  "enter	
  solely	
  such	
  ports	
  on	
  the	
  coast	
  of	
  Africa where	
  the	
  slave	
  trade	
  is	
  permitted	
  to	
  the	
  subjects	
  of	
  the	
  [Brazilian]	
  Empire,	
  and	
  to	
  return from	
  thence	
  to	
  any	
  of	
  the	
  ports	
  of	
  this	
  Empire	
  where	
  alone	
  they	
  shall	
  be	
  permitted	
  to	
  land	
  
the	
  slaves"	
  (FO	
  315/65).	
  	
  This	
  is	
  a	
  clear	
  reference	
  to	
  the	
  fact	
  that	
  on	
  23rd	
  November	
  1826,	
  
Brazil	
  had	
  signed	
  a	
  treaty	
  with	
  Britain	
  permitting	
  the	
  continuation	
  of	
  her	
  slave	
  trade	
  south of	
  the	
  equator	
  (Tinnie	
  2008).	
  
However,	
  on	
  September	
  6th	
  1827,	
  the	
  Captain	
  of	
  the	
  *HMS	
  Sybille*	
  noted	
  in	
  his	
  log	
  that	
  he	
  had	
  
captured	
  "the	
  Brazilian	
  brig	
  *Henriqueta*	
  from	
  Lagos	
  to	
  Bahia	
  with	
  562	
  slaves"	
  (ADM 51/3466).	
  	
  He	
  later	
  wrote	
  to	
  his	
  commander	
  that	
  he	
  had	
  "the	
  satisfaction	
  to	
  report	
  to	
  you for	
  the	
  information	
  of	
  His	
  Royal	
  Highness	
  the	
  Lord	
  High	
  Admiral,	
  that	
  His	
  Majesty's	
  Ship	
  
under	
  my	
  command,	
  captured	
  on	
  the	
  6th	
  of	
  September	
  last,	
  the	
  Brazilian	
  Brig	
  *Henriqueta*,	
  of	
  
257	
  tons,	
  mounting	
  three	
  guns,	
  a	
  crew	
  of	
  38	
  men	
  and	
  having	
  on	
  board	
  569	
  slaves,	
  from Lagos	
  in	
  the	
  Bight	
  of	
  Benin"	
  (ADM	
  1/1682). The	
  *Henriqueta*	
  reached	
  Sierra	
  Leone	
  "under	
  the	
  command	
  of	
  Mr	
  Frederick	
  William	
  Mather, admiralty	
  mate	
  of	
  His	
  Majesty's	
  Ship	
  "Sybille",	
  having	
  made	
  a	
  good	
  passage	
  of	
  twenty	
  three days"	
  (FO	
  84/66).	
  	
  The	
  slaves	
  "were	
  landed	
  and	
  delivered	
  over	
  to	
  the	
  Liberated	
  African Department"	
  (FO	
  84/66)	
  for	
  registration.	
  	
  They	
  were	
  emancipated	
  "by	
  Decree	
  of	
  the	
  British	
  
and	
  Portuguese	
  Court	
  of	
  Mixed	
  Commission	
  on	
  the	
  29th	
  day	
  of	
  October	
  1827,	
  the	
  said	
  Brig	
  
having	
  been	
  pronounced	
  liable	
  to	
  condemnation	
  by	
  the	
  said	
  commission	
  on	
  the	
  same	
  day for	
  having	
  been	
  at	
  the	
  time	
  of	
  capture	
  engaged	
  in	
  the	
  illicit	
  traffic	
  in	
  slaves"	
  (FO	
  315/31). Five	
  hundred	
  and	
  forty-­‐two	
  Africans	
  were	
  registered	
  as	
  emancipated	
  by	
  the	
  Liberated African	
  Department.	
  	
  48%	
  were	
  men,	
  14	
  %	
  women	
  and	
  the	
  rest	
  children,	
  the	
  youngest	
  being a	
  girl	
  of	
  six	
  months	
  travelling	
  with	
  her	
  mother,	
  Ahgotay,	
  who	
  was	
  aged	
  twenty-­‐eight	
  (FO 315/31).	
  	
  Each	
  African	
  was	
  registered	
  with	
  their	
  name,	
  age	
  and	
  height,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  a description	
  of	
  any	
  marks	
  on	
  their	
  body,	
  the	
  purpose	
  of	
  this	
  registration	
  being	
  to	
  prevent their	
  re-­‐enslavement. Following	
  her	
  condemnation	
  at	
  Sierra	
  Leone	
  in	
  October	
  1827,	
  the	
  *Henriqueta*	
  was requisitioned	
  to	
  the	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  West	
  Africa	
  Squadron	
  and	
  became	
  the	
  HMS	
  *Black	
  Joke*.	
  	
  One extract	
  from	
  her	
  log	
  book	
  shows	
  that	
  she	
  captured	
  six	
  vessels	
  suspected	
  of	
  smuggling	
  slaves in	
  only	
  a	
  month	
  between	
  October	
  and	
  November	
  1830,	
  including	
  five	
  French	
  ships	
  carrying over	
  1500	
  slaves	
  which	
  she	
  was	
  obliged	
  to	
  release	
  due	
  to	
  diplomatic	
  agreements	
  with France,	
  and	
  one	
  Spanish	
  ship,	
  sailing	
  for	
  Cuba	
  which	
  she	
  forced	
  to	
  land	
  on	
  the	
  African	
  coast, allowing	
  567	
  slaves	
  to	
  escape.	
  	
  The	
  vessel	
  was	
  sent	
  to	
  Sierra	
  Leone	
  for	
  adjudication, becoming	
  the	
  HMS	
  *Fair	
  Rosamond*	
  in	
  the	
  West	
  Africa	
  Squadron,	
  mirroring	
  the	
  *Black	
  Joke's* own	
  fate	
  as	
  the	
  *Henriqueta*	
  three	
  years	
  previously	
  (ADM	
  1/1	
  and	
  www.slavevoyages.org). 

## Bibliography 1. Primary	
  Sources:

ADM	
  1/1:	
  List	
  of	
  slave	
  vessels	
  boarded	
  by	
  HM	
  Brig	
  "Black	
  Joke"	
  between	
  the	
  4th	
  October and	
  10th	
  of	
  November	
  1830.	
  
ADM	
  1/1682:	
  Letter	
  from	
  Commodore	
  Collier,	
  12	
  Dec	
  1827.	
  
ADM	
  51/3466:	
  Captain's	
  Log	
  of	
  HMS	
  *Sybille*,	
  Thursday	
  6th	
  Sept.	
  1827	
  
FO	
  84/66	
  Report	
  on	
  the	
  Henriqueta,	
  October	
  30th	
  1827	
  
FO	
  315/31	
  Sierra	
  Leone	
  Registry	
  of	
  Slaves	
  1827	
  
FO	
  315/65	
  Passport	
  issued	
  to	
  Commander	
  of	
  the	
  *Henriqueta*,	
  11th	
  August	
  1827	
  

	
  

## 2. Secondary	
  Sources:

Jordan,	
  Michael,	
  *The	
  Great	
  Abolition	
  Sham*	
  (2005). Lewis-­‐Jones,	
  Huw	
  *The	
  Royal	
  Navy	
  and	
  the	
  Battle	
  to	
  end	
  Slavery*	
  (2010)	
  at	
  
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/abolition/royal_navy_article_01.shtml	
  accessed	
  on	
  27th November	
  2010.	
  
Tinnie,	
  D.G.,	
  "The	
  Slaving	
  Brig	
  *Henriqueta*	
  and	
  her	
  evil	
  sister:	
  a	
  case	
  study	
  in	
  the	
  19th	
  century	
  illegal	
  
slave	
  trade	
  to	
  Brazil"	
  in	
  *The	
  Journal	
  of	
  African	
  American	
  History	
  93:4	
  (2008)*	
  pp.509-­‐532.	
  
www.royalnavy.mod.uk	
  accessed	
  on	
  27th	
  November	
  2010.	
  
www.slavevoyages.org	
  accessed	
  on	
  27th	
  November	
  2010.