Peak Era of Slave Ship Revolts: One in Ten Ships Experiences Uprising During Middle Passage

Historical analysis of European shipping records documents that the years 1751-1775 were the peak era of slave ship revolts, with approximately one in ten slave ships experiencing an uprising during the Middle Passage. At least 45 documented revolts on British and American ships are recorded, with additional revolts aboard French, Dutch, Portuguese, and Spanish vessels. Many revolts occurred within sight of African shores during the eight months ships typically spent gathering captives along the West African coast — a period during which captives could see land, had not yet experienced the full horrors ahead, and could form social bonds and plan. The mean number of Africans killed during suppressions was approximately 25, or about 10 percent of those aboard. Ship captains responded with increasingly brutal preventive measures: leg irons, neck collars, separate confinement of men and women, regular inspections for tools or loose shackles. The sheer frequency of revolts testifies to the unbroken will to resist among people facing the Middle Passage.