In 1871, 15 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-1051 occurred via the Court of Vice Admiralty, Zanzibar
| RegID | LA-E-1051 |
|---|---|
| Case Name | Unspecified |
| Year | 1871 |
| Government Department | Colonial and Foreign Offices, Great Britain |
| Court | Court of Vice Admiralty, Zanzibar |
| Trial Outcome | Condemned |
| Enslaved Total | 300 |
| Liberated Africans Total | 15 |
| Registered Total | 0 |
| Notes | Her Majesty’s ship “ Teazer” came in on the 11th instant from the Seychelles. She went into the ports of Merka and Brava, and overhauled upwards of sixty dhows, of which she captured and destroyed three as being engaged in the slave trade. In examining these cases, I took particular pains to show the new Sultan the impartiality of the Vice-Admiralty Court of Zanzibar. I gave his delegate every opportunity of cross-examining the witnesses and eliciting the truth. With regard to the first dhow there was no shade of doubt as to her calling. She had sailed from Kilwa ten days previous to her capture with a cargo of about three hundred slaves, but had touched at Moufia for water, and had proceeded on her journey north, when, in the neighbourhood of Brava, she caught sight of the “ Teazer,” and made for the land immediately. On approaching land, her cargo, with the exception of fifteen slaves, was turned out into the sea, and managed to escape with the Captain and the crew. I caused those poor wretches who were rescued to be landed at Zanzibar, and after giving Bishop Tozer his pick of them for his Church Mission, I sent the remaining fourteen to the Homan Catholic Mission. In the present unsettled state of affairs with Syud Burgash, I deemed it unadvisable to distribute any liberated slaves in the plantations. The second dhow belonged to an Arab of Lamo. Neither had any papers, but they each, according to the testimony of the crew, had twelve crew and two passengers. The testimony of the Officers and men of the “ Teazer ” on the other hand, as clearly to the effect that each dhow contained from fifty to sixty souls. They all, at the a approach of the ship’s boats, jumped overboard. It would have been a difficult matter to have come to a decision, had it not been for the impartial testimony of the Captain of a Hamburg schooner, who happened to be on the spot with his vessel when these dhows were captured, and that of the United States Consul at the Seychelles, who was a passenger on board the “ Teazer.” They both testified to the number of people who jumped overboard as being over thirty-five in each dhow, and I therefore gave a decree in favour of Her Majesty’s cruiser. I have twice asked Syud Burgash to punish the crew of these two dhows, but I have little confidence in his doing anything that is right. |
| Sources | British Library, India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/CA11, in Qatar Digital Library, "Capture of Slavers by Her Majesty’s Ship 'Teazer,'" 24 Jan. 1871, f. 67. |
| Cite as |
| X Capture | |
|---|---|
| Y Capture | |
| Ship Status | Unknown |
| 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 Central Africa |
| 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 | Kilwa |
| Capture date at sea or on land, if known. Date of the sentence. Include YYYY-MM-DD, if known. | 1871-11-17 |
| Location | |
| Navy | Britain |
| Ship | Teazer |
| Captain | |
| 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 |