African Institution facts for kids
The African Institution was a group formed in 1807 in Britain. It was created after British people who wanted to end slavery (called abolitionists) successfully stopped the slave trade in the United Kingdom. The main goal of the African Institution was to create a safe and successful home for freed slaves in Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. This was a goal that an earlier group, the Sierra Leone Company, hadn't fully achieved.
The African Institution was led by important figures like James Stephen and William Wilberforce. Later, around 1823, another group called the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery took over most of its work. The African Institution then stopped existing sometime between 1826 and 1828.
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History
While the Sierra Leone Company first tried to change the local people through religion, the African Institution focused on making life better in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. At their first meeting on April 14, 1807, they set out their rules and goals. One of their main aims was to fix the harm that Africans had suffered because of their interactions with Europeans.
The leaders of the African Institution included James Stephen and William Wilberforce. The Duke of Gloucester, who was the nephew of King George III, became the Institution's first president. Many clergymen (religious leaders) and aristocrats (wealthy nobles) also joined. Important Quaker families and Unitarians like Peter Finch Martineau also supported the group.
Working with Sierra Leone Merchants
The African Institution was very interested in working with Paul Cuffe, an African-American businessman. In 1810–11, they asked the British government to give him land in Sierra Leone.
However, African merchants in Freetown, Sierra Leone, found it hard to succeed because a British company called Macaulay and Babington had a strong control over trade in Sierra Leone. On April 7, 1811, Paul Cuffe met with the most important Black merchants in the colony, including the successful John Kizell. They wrote a letter to the African Institution. In it, they explained that the colony most needed settlers to work in farming, trade, and whaling (hunting whales). They believed these three areas would help the colony grow best.
When the Institution received this letter, its members agreed with their ideas. Cuffe and these merchants then started the Friendly Society of Sierra Leone. This was a local group of merchants who helped each other. Their goal was to increase wealth and business among the free people in the colony and to reduce the strong control that English merchants had over trade.
Efforts in the Indian Ocean
The African Institution also worked to reduce slavery in the Indian Ocean. In 1820, they talked with Said bin Sultan, Sultan of Muscat and Oman, who ruled areas including Zanzibar. They aimed to get him to reduce slavery in his lands. This happened after the East India Company had already started working with the Sultan in 1815. In 1821, Ralph Darling, who was the Governor of Mauritius, also took steps against the slave trade.
Reports on Progress
The African Institution's committee published a series of annual Reports from 1807 to 1824. These reports shared their findings and progress.
First Report (1807)
In their first report, presented on July 15, 1807, the committee stated their belief that the people of Africa needed help to improve their lives. They took on the job of bringing the benefits of civilization to what they saw as a large part of the world.
Second Report (1808)
The second report announced prizes worth 50 Guineas (a type of old British money). These prizes were for the first person to bring certain amounts of goods from West Africa to Great Britain, such as:
Another 50 Guinea prize was offered to the person who planted the most land with Coffee in West Africa, as long as it was at least ten acres.
Third Report (1809)
In their third report, presented on March 25, 1809, the directors shared that three young African men had been trained as teachers. This training used new methods developed in India. Thanks to the Duke of Gloucester, these young men worked as teachers before being sent to Sierra Leone. There, they were hired as teachers by the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, the Earl of Liverpool. One of the skills they hoped these teachers would bring to Sierra Leone was how to grow cotton.
Stopping Illegal Slave Trade (1810-1812)
The reports from 1810 to 1812 showed a big concern about the slave trade continuing illegally.
- In 1810, the directors worried that British slave traders were still operating. They were avoiding British laws by using the flags of other countries like Sweden and Spain.
- In 1811, they were upset to report that British and American ships were still involved in the slave trade, again using Portuguese and Spanish flags. They noted that British money and loans played a big part in this trade. Through Henry Brougham MP, they started a discussion in the Houses of Parliament. This led to a new law to make it easier to punish British citizens who used other flags to avoid being caught by courts in Sierra Leone.
- In 1812, the directors reported that they had underestimated how much the slave trade had grown. They estimated that 70,000 to 80,000 enslaved Africans were transported across the Atlantic in 1810 alone. They pointed out the port of Bissau as a major center for this trade.
Declining Slave Trade (1813-1814)
The reports from 1813 and 1814 brought some good news about the slave trade.
- In 1813, the directors were happy to report that the slave trade had decreased. They thanked two naval officers, Commodore Frederick Paul Irby and Captain Edward Scobell, for their efforts.
- In 1814, the directors continued to praise Captain Irby of HMS Amelia and Captain Scobell of HMS Thais. These officers were actively working to stop the slave trade as part of the West Africa Squadron. They also noted action taken against a slave trading post at Cape Mesurado.
Congress of Vienna (1815)
In their ninth report in 1815, the directors were very pleased with a statement from the Congress of Vienna. This important meeting declared that the slave trade was "the desolation of Africa, the degradation of Europe and the afflicting scourge of humanity." However, they were disappointed when this ban was not put into action right away through the Treaty of Paris (1814). They pointed out that since France had no money invested in the slave trade, delaying the ban for five years actually meant introducing the slave trade to France.
Special Report, 1815
A special report was made in 1815 to respond to criticisms from Robert Thorpe. The seventh annual report had noted that conditions in Sierra Leone were getting worse, but had still sounded positive about everyone involved. Some people, like William Allen and John Clarkson, were worried. Thorpe, however, made very strong criticisms in pamphlets, especially targeting Zachary Macaulay. Henry Brougham led an internal investigation in early 1814, with Wilberforce, Macaulay, and Thomas Clarkson. The result was that Thomas Perronet Thompson, the governor in Sierra Leone, who had already been removed in 1810, was strongly criticized.
Twelfth Report, 1818
In their twelfth report in 1818, the directors repeated their fears that the efforts of the West Africa Squadron to stop the slave trade might be limited after peace was declared. They confirmed this had happened, referring to a court decision by William Scott about a French ship called Le Lois. A British ship, HMS Queen Charlotte, had captured Le Lois, and a court in Sierra Leone had ruled against the ship and its cargo. However, when the owners appealed, Scott overturned the ruling. He said that stopping and boarding Le Lois was illegal because "No nation can exercise a right of visitation and search on the common and unappropriated parts of the sea, save only on the belligerent claim." He agreed that this would make it very hard to stop the slave trade, but argued that this problem should be fixed through international agreements, not by naval officers going beyond their allowed powers.
Sixteenth Report (1822)
The sixteenth report was given at a meeting with over 1,500 people on May 10, 1822. After thanking the directors, the meeting passed a motion. They decided to ask the British government to work with other nations to declare the slave trade as an act of piracy.
Anti-Slavery Society (1823)
The Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery Throughout the British Dominions, often called the "Anti-Slavery Society," was formed in 1823. Many of its leaders were also leaders in the African Institution, like James Cropper and Thomas Babington Macaulay. This new society had a slightly more open approach.
End of the Institution
The Twentieth Report (1826) of the African Institution focused on sharing information rather than summarizing activities or raising money. William Wilberforce had retired. By about 1828, the work of the original group was mostly being carried out by the Anti-Slavery Society.
See Also
