The Middle Passage
The Middle Passage was the brutal voyage
carrying Africans from their home continent to a life
of slavery in the new world. It was called the middle
passage because it was just one part of a trade
network that brought goods to Africa, slaves to
America and raw materials to Europe.
Many slaves never completed the journey.
They lost their lives to poor nutrition, disease or
violence at the hands of their kidnappers. Often
about one third of the Africans died during the
voyage. Sometimes the total was much higher. On
board the ships, slaves would be packed below the
decks. Captains became known as “loose packers”
or “tight packers” depending on how many slaves
they crammed into the space they had. Extra slaves
led to more misery and death but the possibility of
higher profits.
Life on a slave ship quickly settled into a
routine. During periods of good weather, the slaves
would be brought up on deck in the morning. The
men would be shackled together with iron chains,
while the women and children would be allowed to
roam about on deck. At about nine o' clock in the
morning they were given their first meal of the day.
Slaves from different parts of Africa would often be
fed different meals. Those from northern Africa would
be fed boiled rice or cornmeal. Slaves from central
West Africa had stewed yams, and those from farther
south in the Congo River region would be fed a flour
dough with some banana-like fruits. Sometimes a few
lumps of raw meat would be thrown in with a slave’s
food to keep them healthy.
In the late afternoon came the slaves' second
and only other meal of the day. Sometimes it was the
same as their first, but most captains were not that
humane. The afternoon meal usually consisted only of
horse beans, very large beans used to feed horses.
They were the cheapest form of food available. To
cover up the horrible taste, large amounts of red
pepper, called "slabber sauce", were added.
The captains needed to keep the slaves in
acceptable physical condition if they were to be sold at
high prices. Each morning after breakfast the slaves
were "danced" on deck, in order to give them exercise.
Men and women were forced to jump up and down to
the rhythm that was pounded out on an African drum or
iron kettle. The slaves, otherwise kept miserably in the
"tween decks", enjoyed this dancing, as it was their only
form of physical recreation during the entire day. Each
day at sunset the slaves would be placed back below deck
to rest in the misery and filth that was the "tween decks".
Yet the worst time of the Middle Passage came
for the slaves when the ship was met with periods of
bad weather. During storms the Africans were forced
to remain below deck all day and night. The holds were
dark, filthy, slimy, and they stank of death. The "tween
decks" were often full not only with slaves, both living
and dead, but also with blood, vomit, urine, and
human waste. Also during periods of inclement
weather the slaves were not fed as usual. They were
often forced to scrounge for small crumbs and pieces
of spoiled food.
Name: ____________________________________
Trans-Atlantic Journey Assignment
Task: Read the passage on the other side of this page entitled “The Middle Passage” and use the
information to answer the following questions. This assignment is worth 10 points.
1. Why was the journey of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic refered to as the “Middle Passage?”
2. Why would some of the captains try to fit as many slaves as possible into the ships?
3. Describe the diet of the slaves.
4. Why was it important to the ship captains to let the slaves exercise during the journey?
5. Think Question - In your opinion, what was the worst part of the Trans-Atlantic journey? Support
your answer with details from the passage.