Economic Reasons Rather than Humanitarian Reasons Attributed to the Abolition of the Atlantic Slave Trade

Abstract

Slavery has long existed in human societies, and it has been a commonly accepted fact of life since before the written records began and has lingered in some parts of the world until the present time. The institution of slavery was primarily to provide inexpensive labour and in some societies to promote group wealth and identity among the enslavers. Among the major crimes that have marked human history was the Atlantic slave, the Europeans establish trade for African captives across the Atlantic Ocean from the middle of the 15th century until the end of the 19th, which led to the devastation and depopulation as well as the economic underdevelopment of Africa, and on the other hand, contributed to the wealth and economic development of Europe. The transatlantic slave trade is unique in terms of the destructive impact it had on Africa.  How the Atlantic slave trade came to be abolished has been the subject of ongoing historical debate among Historians. The focus of this paper is to discuss the major points that support the argument that Economic reasons rather than Humanitarian reasons attributed to the Abolition of the Atlantic Slave Trade.