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Slave traders: the men who built a brutal empire

Nicholas Radburn examines the ruthless practices of the men who made the 18th-century trans-Atlantic slave trade possible

Published: October 13, 2023 at 7:50 AM

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The trans-Atlantic slave trade expanded greatly in the 18th century, growing from a relatively small enterprise to a global business that saw millions of African people clapped in irons, forced to undergo the tortuous Middle Passage and then sold at market in the Americas. Speaking to Rhiannon Davies, Nicholas Radburn investigates the merchants across the globe who tried to expand their bottom lines by branching out into slave trading.

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Nicholas Radburn is the author of Traders in Men: Merchants and the Transformation of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (Yale University Press, 2023)

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Authors

Rhiannon DaviesFreelance journalist

A former BBC History Magazine section editor, Rhiannon has long been fascinated by history and continues to write for HistoryExtra.com. She has appeared on the award-winning HistoryExtra podcast, interviewing experts on a variety of subjects, from Lucy Worsley discussing Agatha Christie to Sir Ranulph Fiennes on the perils of polar exploration

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