West Africa Squadron facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This page is about the period from 1808–1856, 1866. For the succeeding article Cape of Good Hope and West Africa Station (1857–1865, 1867–1920), see Cape of Good Hope Station. For the succeeding article (1942–1945), see Flag Officer, West Africa.

Quick facts for kids West Africa Squadron
HMS Black Joke and prizes (clockwise from top left) Providentia, Vengador, Presidenta, Marianna, El Almirante, and El Hassey
Active	1808–1867
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Navy
Role	Suppression of the slave trade, from Cape Verde to Benguela
Size	Squadron

The West Africa Squadron, also known as the Preventative Squadron, was a special group of ships from the British Royal Navy. Their main job was to stop the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa. This squadron was formed in 1808 after the British Parliament passed a law called the Slave Trade Act 1807. This law made it illegal for British people to trade in slaves. The squadron was based out of Portsmouth, England.

The squadron's impact is still talked about today. Some people say it played a big part in ending the slave trade. Others believe it didn't have enough resources and faced problems like corruption. Sailors in the Royal Navy often saw this duty as one of the toughest jobs because of the many tropical diseases. During its time, the squadron captured about 6% of the ships carrying enslaved people across the Atlantic. They managed to free around 150,000 Africans. Sadly, between 1830 and 1865, almost 1,600 sailors died while serving with the squadron, mostly from illness.

Stopping the Slave Trade
Squadron's Impact
- Freed Slaves
Challenges and Criticisms
- Working Conditions
Images for kids
See Also

Stopping the Slave Trade

On March 25, 1807, Britain officially ended the slave trade. This meant British citizens could no longer buy, sell, or transport enslaved people. To make sure this new law was followed, the British Admiralty sent two ships to patrol the African coast in 1808. At first, these ships could only stop vessels flying the flag of an enemy country. This made it easier to stop slave ships during the Napoleonic Wars.

Portugal was a major slave-trading nation and also Britain's ally against France. In 1810, Portugal agreed to a deal that let British ships search Portuguese vessels. This meant Portugal could only trade slaves from its own African lands.

Early Efforts and Challenges

A private ship called the Dart was one of the first to chase slave ships. It did this to earn money from rewards offered by the British government. The Dart and another private ship, the Kitty, were the only private vessels to hunt slave ships for profit. This shows that it wasn't very profitable for private ships to do this.

After the Napoleonic Wars ended, many European countries agreed to work towards ending the slave trade. France agreed to stop trading slaves in 1814, and Spain agreed to stop north of the equator in 1817. However, early agreements were often weak. Until 1835, the squadron could only seize ships if enslaved people were found on board. They couldn't stop ships that were clearly set up for slave trading but didn't have slaves at that moment. If slaves were found, a large fine of £100 per person could be charged. Some slave ship captains would even throw enslaved people overboard to avoid these huge fines.

Courts and Naval Stations

To deal with captured ships and their crews, special courts were set up along the African coast. In 1807, a court was created in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Later, in 1817, "Mixed Commission Courts" were established. These courts had officials from both Britain and other countries like Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands.

At first, the squadron's actions were very limited by these treaties. Officers could even be punished if they went beyond their authority.

Commodore Sir George Ralph Collier was the first leader of the West Africa Squadron. He had only six ships to patrol over 5,000 kilometers (about 3,100 miles) of coastline. He served from 1818 to 1821.

In 1819, the Royal Navy set up a naval station in West Africa at Freetown. Most of the enslaved Africans freed by the squadron chose to settle in Sierra Leone. They feared being re-enslaved if they were simply left on the coast among strangers. From 1821, the squadron also used Ascension Island as a supply base, which later moved to Cape Town in 1832.

Faster Ships and New Technology

As the Royal Navy started stopping slave ships, slave traders began using faster vessels, especially Baltimore clippers. At first, the Royal Navy often couldn't catch these ships. But then, the Royal Navy started using captured slave clippers and new, faster ships from Britain. This helped them regain the advantage. One of the most successful ships in the West Africa Squadron was a captured ship renamed HMS Black Joke. It caught 11 slave ships in just one year!

By the 1840s, the West Africa Squadron began using paddle steamers like HMS Hydra. These steamships were much better than sailing ships. They didn't depend on the wind, and their shallow design allowed them to patrol close to shore and in rivers. In the mid-1800s, there were about 25 ships and 2,000 sailors in the squadron, plus another 1,000 local African sailors helping out.

Britain also pushed other nations to sign treaties that gave the Royal Navy the right to search their ships for slaves. As the 19th century went on, the Royal Navy also started stopping slave trading in North Africa, the Middle East, and the Indian Ocean.

The United States Navy also helped the West Africa Squadron. They started in 1820 with USS Cyane. After the Webster-Ashburton Treaty in 1842, the US contribution became known as the Africa Squadron.

In 1867, the West Coast of Africa Station became part of the Cape of Good Hope Station. Later, during World War II in 1942, the West Africa Station was brought back as its own command until 1945.

Squadron's Impact

The West Africa Squadron captured about 1,600 ships involved in the slave trade. They freed 150,000 enslaved people from these ships between 1807 and 1860.

Some historians, like Robert Pape and Chaim Kaufmann, have called the squadron the most expensive international effort to do good in modern history.

Freed Slaves

When enslaved people were freed, they were returned to Africa. However, those who came from inland areas often couldn't go back to their original homes. They sometimes suffered terrible conditions during the journey back or while waiting for courts to decide their fate. It's thought that as many as 25% of those who couldn't return home died before they were fully released.

Some freed slaves joined the Royal Navy or the West India Regiments. Also, 35,850 were recruited and sent to work in the West Indies, officially as apprentices.

Challenges and Criticisms

Some experts, like Howard W. French, argue that the squadron's impact has been exaggerated. He says it's often used to create a positive image of British history, instead of focusing on their past involvement in slave trading. A 2021 paper in the International Journal of Maritime History suggested that the Royal Navy wasn't fully committed to ending the slave trade. It noted that the squadron made up less than five percent of the Royal Navy's warships and was too small for the huge area it had to patrol.

Mary Wills, from the Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation, pointed out that the squadron was driven by ideas of helping people, but also by desires for expansion. She noted that the squadron "depended on Africans for the day to day operation of their activities," especially the Kru people. John Rankin of East Tennessee State University added that "African and diaspora sailors made up one-fifth of shipboard personnel." He also mentioned that Kru sailors worked together in groups, serving on ships under a leader who communicated between them and the British officers.

Working Conditions

James Watt, a Royal Navy officer, wrote that the squadron's crews were "exhausted by heavy rowing under extreme tropical conditions." They were also exposed to fevers that often had lasting effects and from which they rarely fully recovered. The squadron had much higher rates of sickness and death compared to the rest of the Royal Navy.

Images for kids

HMS Black Joke and prizes (clockwise from top left) Providentia, Vengador, Presidenta, Marianna, El Almirante, and El Hassey