Wolof Captives Stage First Recorded Atlantic Slave Ship Revolt

In 1532, enslaved Wolof Africans aboard a Portuguese slave vessel revolted during the Middle Passage, making this the first documented slave ship revolt in the Atlantic. The uprising was suppressed. Ship revolts were a persistent form of resistance throughout the trade's history, scholars estimate revolts occurred on approximately one in ten slaving voyages, forcing traders to invest heavily in chains, armed guards, and netting. The ever-present threat of revolt shaped the brutal architecture of the slave ship.