Portuguese participation in the slave
trade : opposing forces, trends of opinion
within Portuguese society : effects on
Portugal's socio-economic development
Françoise Latour da Veiga Pinto assisted by A. Carreira
The origins of the slave trade and Portugal's monopolySlave trading went hand in hand with the great Portuguese discoveries of the
fifteenth century. It was probably not initially one of the purposes of trading
expeditions ; but it was in keeping with the spirit of the time, and people took
naturally to it. Its progressive growth was the result of changes in the economic
motives underlying Portugal's expansion.
The conquest of Ceuta in 1415 marked the beginning of Portugal's
maritime adventure, which subsequently started other nations off on the road
to the conquest of new continents and led to the expansion of Europe.
The earliest navigators to round the coast of Africa were prompted
mainly by two economic motives : to discover the source of production of
Sudanese gold, which had so far reached Europe via North Africa, and to
find the sea route to India and her silk and spice markets.
But the ideals of the crusades also played their part, and gave moral and
religious backing to the expeditions. When the first sailor-knights rounded the
coast of Africa, they were also in search of the kingdom of Préster John, in
the hope of making common cause with him against the infidel. Taking Muslim
prisoners was in any case regarded as a deed of valour deserving the Church's
indulgence. Thus the first Negroes to be captured were taken by men convinced
that they were doing a great feat—and also a virtuous deed, since every one
of the 'wretches' baptized meant a soul won for God. The technique initially
used to acquire the first slaves, filhamento or kidnapping, was likewise inherited
from the Middle Ages : surprise attacks were made on isolated nomad camps
and the captives brought back to Portugal, with—as recorded by Gomes Eanes
de Zurara in his Guinea Chronicle (1453)—the 'holy purpose of saving lost
souls'. It was Nuno Tristao who in 1441 had the dubious honour of bringing
back the first Negroes direct from the west coast of Africa, south of Cape
Bojador: they were Zenaga nomads.
The island of Arguin was discovered in 1443, and on 8 August 1444
(writes Zurara) the first public sale of slaves was held at Lagos in the presence