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1 Chapter 1 The Era of the Atlantic Slave Trade For the purposes of this study, the period following the criminalization of the Atlantic slave trade in the early nineteenth century is the narrative present. This period is characterized by several major transformations, but these nineteenthcentury manifestations were shaped, constrained, and guided by African societies and individuals who exhibited a remarkable connection with their past. Moreover , the societies and states of both regions had emerged from a complex history of settlement, migration, social and political development, and cultural exchange with neighboring peoples. Both the Gold Coast and Senegal had been on the periphery of the great empires of the Niger bend, had received waves of settlers from the West African interior, and were connected by trading networks to other parts of the macroregion and even to each other. Senegal, in addition, was on the frontier of the Saharan zone. These African connections would not disappear after the sixteenth century, despite the growing importance of the Atlantic trade. Nevertheless, the transatlantic slave trade must be recognized as central to the increasing signi¤cance of slavery in West African societies and economies, and in this trade, the Gold Coast and Senegal were among the earliest participants . The experiences of the slave trade have been the subject of numerous monographs and countless articles. In West African history, they are sometimes portrayed as the de¤ning feature of the precolonial period, leading to radical social and economic changes. This notion is highly politicized and for the regions You are reading copyrighted material published by Ohio University Press/Swallow Press. Unauthorized posting, copying, or distributing of this work except as permitted under U.S. copyright law is illegal and injures the author and publisher. 2 Slavery and Reform in West Africa under consideration here must be quali¤ed somewhat. While the transatlantic slave trade was a catalyst for sociocultural change within the small seaboard “frontier” areas of Euro-African interaction, its effect became more diffuse the farther one traveled from the coastal zone. This chapter is not intended as either a comprehensive ethnography or a study of the Atlantic slave trade. Its purpose is threefold: to ascertain the borders of this study in space and time, to establish its comparative structure, and,¤nally, to examine aspects of the dynamic African societies that formed the setting of this struggle over the issue of slavery. Boundaries Since the subject of this study is the interaction between speci¤c groups of colonial and African actors, its limits are more de¤ned by human geography than ecology. Thus the regions included in this study can be said to be the Wolof and Sereer states of Senegal and the Akan and Ga-Adangme societies of the Gold Coast. To a greater or lesser degree, the populations of these regions shared a common experience of European intervention in the nineteenth century that exceeded that of regions farther in the interior. This intervention was concentrated on the coast and gradually diminished inland. Coastal towns such as St. Louis, Dakar, Cape Coast, and Accra were centers of Euro-African interaction, whereas large interior states such as Akyem Abuakwa and Jolof maintained a more indirect association with events on the coast until late in the century. States farther removed from the coast and European in¶uence—especially Asante and Fuuta Tooro—had long-established and dynamic relationships with coastal states, but had distinct experiences during the nineteenth century and are not included in this study. These boundaries are not rigid. During the period in focus, frontiers of colonial expansion and borders between African states shifted. Moreover, ethnicity and state do not necessarily equate, and both subjugated and semiautonomous ethnic minorities existed within the territories claimed by organized states. Finally , the balance of power between competing European powers did not completely resolve itself until late in the nineteenth century. Ecologically, both regions were affected by the distinct ecological banding that characterizes the environment of West Africa. By 1850 the Senegal River delta was ¤rmly within the arid Sahelian zone. The southern bank of the river during this period constituted the northern boundary of the Wolof state of You are reading copyrighted material published by Ohio University Press/Swallow Press. Unauthorized posting, copying, or distributing of this work except as permitted under U.S. copyright law is illegal and injures the author and publisher. The Era of the Atlantic Slave Trade 3 Waalo. Cultivation, mostly of sorghum and millet, was largely limited to the river’s...

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