In 1871, 12 enslaved African(s) were “liberated” in a state-run scheme usually resulting in involuntary indentures, conscription, or re-enslavement. Under the jurisdiction of 1, Case ID LA-E-1045 occurred via the Court of Vice Admiralty, Zanzibar
| RegID | LA-E-1045 |
|---|---|
| Case Name | Unspecified |
| Year | 1871 |
| Government Department | Colonial and Foreign Offices, Great Britain |
| Court | Court of Vice Admiralty, Zanzibar |
| Trial Outcome | Condemned |
| Enslaved Total | 12 |
| Liberated Africans Total | 12 |
| Registered Total | 0 |
| Notes | These ship registers of the HMS 'Columbine' relate to the aftermath of the abolition of the slave trade by Great Britain in the nineteenth century. British officials thought that the Seychelles was a good location for these liberated Africans to serve indenture because they believed that the climate suited them. The HMS 'Columbine' was actively involved in detaining slave dhows particularly in 1871-1872. This case likely involved the headshots of liberated Africans. John Gubbins was a book collector, antiquarian and writer. He donated his collection of old books, pictures and manuscripts to the University of the Witwatersrand. A disastrous fire in 1931 at the University's central block destroyed thousands of books, and a large part of Gubbins' Africana collection. These are some of the records that survived. |
| Sources | "Return of Vessels detained as being engaged in the Slave Trade," 1 Jul. - 28 Sep 1871, in “Class B. East coast of Africa. Correspondence respecting the slave trade,” in T. P. O'Neill, T. F. Turley, et al., eds., Irish University Press Series of British Parliamentary Papers: Slave Trade, vol. 53 (Shannon: Irish University Press, 1968-1969), 86; Historical Papers Research Archive, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, ZA HPRA A299, “List of Liberated Africans, landed from H. M. Ship Columbine,” compiled by John Gaspard Gubbings, 1872. Matthew S. Hopper "Liberated Africans in Indian Ocean Spreadsheet" (donated to Liberated Africans in 2018); Matthew S. Hopper, “Liberated Africans in the Indian Ocean World,” in Richard Anderson, and Henry B. Lovejoy, Liberated Africans and the Abolition of the Slave Trade, 1807-1896 (Rochester: Rochester University Press, 2020), 215-237; Matthew S. Hopper, Slaves of One Master: Globalization and Slavery in Arabia in the Age of Empire (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2015); The National Archives, UK, Admiralty, 53/10233. |
| Cite as |
| X Capture | 4361113.407829 |
|---|---|
| Y Capture | -685850.975368 |
| Ship Status | Liberated Africans |
| Date of departure from a place or port in Africa generally following the purchase of enslaved people. Include YYYY-MM-DD, if known. | |
| Region of departure from Africa. Required entry. For more information about the geographical hierarchy used in this digital resource, please refer to AfricanRegions.org. | East Africa (unspecified) |
| Place or port of departure from Africa, if known. A controlled vocabulary for place names are associated with geographic coordinates using Google Maps Global Mercator EPSG:900913. See https://epsg.io/transform#s_srs=4326&t_srs=900913&x=NaN&y=NaN | |
| Capture date at sea or on land, if known. Date of the sentence. Include YYYY-MM-DD, if known. | |
| Location | Zanzibar |
| Navy | Britain |
| Ship | Wolverine |
| Captain | Wratislaw |
| Supporting Ships | |
| Sentence Date | |
| Date of arrival to the place where the trial, purchase, or asylum occurred, resulting in "liberation" and indenture. Includes YYYY-MM-DD, if known. | |
| Region of arrival around the world. Required field. For more information about the geographical hierarchy used in this digital resource, please refer to AfricanRegions.org. Other regions outside of Africa include, Western Europe, East Coast of North America, etc. | East Coast of Africa |
| Place or port of arrival around the world. Required field. A controlled vocabulary for place names are associated with geographic coordinates using Google Maps Global Mercator EPSG:900913. See https://epsg.io/transform#s_srs=4326&t_srs=900913&x=NaN&y=NaN | Zanzibar |