Top 10 African countries that contributed to Slave trade

Slave trade is define as buying and selling of slave.

Before the partition of Europeans, slave trade was in Africa before their adventure.

Early 15th Century in Africa, people became subjected to a powerful or wealthy people and were treated unfairly as compared to others.

1.Bennin

The main market for the export of slaves and were hugely involved in this trade, and profited from it. The Kingdom of Dahomey  now Benin raised the prices of slaves which attracted the attention of the more powerful Oyo Empire, resulting in their downfall in the 1740s.

Benin therefore could not be left off the list of African nations involved in the slave trade.

2. Morocco

Morocco took part in the slave trade. The major slave markets for supplying slaves were in Morocco in Tangiers. Marrakesh and Fez where slaves were sold on the streets. During the many wars for expansion that the Alawite Dynasty fought, they captured many Africans and sold them as slaves to the Middle Eastern Empires. The slave trade finally ended in 1950.

This puts Morocco firmly on the list of African nations involved in the slave trade.

3. Algeria

Algiers was a state in Algeria that lasted from 1518 to 1830, and it was part of the Ottoman Empire. They were huge players in the slave trade, enslaving both Africans and Europeans that they raided along with the Barbary pirates.

The slave trade lasted till 1830 when war with the French led to the end of Ottoman rule of Algeria.

4. Egypt

Egypt was a major player in the Trans-Saharan and then the Atlantic slave trade. It started in 641 AD with the Muslim Conquest of Egypt by the Rashidun caliphate.

Later on, Egypt became part of the Ottoman Empire in the 1500’s. It is estimated that millions of slaves were taken from Egypt to Asia. It ended in the 1900’s after immense pressure by the British.

5. (Cameroon)

Slaving activities in Cameroon lasted from 700 to 1900 AD. The major trade commodity of the Empire around 900 AD was in slaves, with around 5,000 slaves traded annually by the end of the 15th century. Initially, the slaves were sold in the trans-Saharan slave trade, but eventually they took part in the transatlantic slave trade as well, with around two million slaves having walked through the slave route in their Empire.

6. Kingdom of Allada

The Kingdom of Allada was a coastal Kingdom located in Southern Benin. It reached the peak of its power in the 16th century when it was a center of the Atlantic Slave trade, being a huge source of slaves. Slaves were captured by raiding and attacking enemy kingdoms. These slaves were then traded on to the European slavers who were bound for America.

7. Aro Confederacy

The Aro Confederacy was a political union located in present-day South-Eastern Nigeria. The Igbo who were part of the Aro Confederacy were one of the leading exporters of slaves to Europe and the Americas from 1690 to 1902[7]. Estimates indicate that 850,000 slaves were exported overseas. The Aro confederacy was therefore a major player among African nations involved in the slave trade.

8. Ghana

They were formed in 1700 and took part in the slave trade until the 19th century [The economy of the Ghana was based on the trade of gold and slaves, while their army mainly served as a tool to capture more and more Africans and force them into slavery. Captives in war were taken as slaves to be either treated as slaves in the Empire or be exported across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas.

9. Songhai Empire

The Songhai Empire was one of the largest states in African history and was located in Western Africa. The slave trade was a huge part of the Songhai Empire Slaves were used extensively within the Empire itself to transport goods, while literate slaves stood a chance of becoming government officials, but many were.

10.Mali

Mali Slave trading  in Mali  lasted from 1235 to 1670 AD. They were hugely involved in trade but also the trade of slaves through the trans-Saharan trade route. Slave labour was common and so was the export of slaves. Thousands were enslaved in raids and wars waged by the Mali Empire over the years

The Slavery was finally abolished by the French after Mali was colonized