Black History: Slavery Timeline

1441 - Explorers from Portugal begin taking slaves from the west coast of Africa.. over the next 200 years they would transport over 4 million Africans to Europe and the Americas 1492 - In Haiti, Columbus and the Spanish enslaved the native Indians and soon wiped them out. They then brought in African slaves. Spain ceded the western part of the island to France in 1697 and they continued to import slaves until there were over 500,000 slaves and only 30,000 whites. In 1802, the slaves revolted and Haiti became the first free black republic in the Americas. 1494 - Columbus arrives in Jamaica. The Spanish first enslaved the native Indians, then brought African slaves to the island. In 1655 the English invaded. the Spanish surrendered, freed their slaves and fled to Cuba. the freed slaves, known as the maroons, fled to the interior and developed communities. They warred against the English and in 1808 the English abolished slavery. 1619 - The first slaves arrive in Jamestown Virginia. Eventually over 4 million slaves would arrive in America, primary to harvest cotton in the South. The southern states depended on slavery for most of their economy. Eventually tensions between North and South led to the civil war. In 1863 Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation freeing slaves in the southern states. in 1865, the 13th amendment officially abolished slavery and in 1868 the 14th amendment made all slaves born in the united states citizens. In all 12-16 million Africans were brought to the Caribbean and the united states with many dying on the way.