What happened to slave ships?
After the transatlantic slave trade was outlawed, most slave ships were either scrapped or deliberately sunk to hide evidence of their illegal activity, with some notable examples like the "Clotilda" being scuttled and burned upon reaching the United States to avoid prosecution; today, researchers are working to locate and study the wrecks of these ships to understand the history of the slave trade further
Key points about slave ships after the trade was banned:
Legal repercussions:Once the slave trade was outlawed, any ship caught transporting enslaved people was considered a pirate vessel and subject to capture by naval forces like the British Royal Navy or the U.S. Navy.Â
Hiding evidence:To avoid legal consequences, many slave ship captains would deliberately sink their vessels after unloading their human cargo, often burning them to destroy evidence of their illegal activity.Â
The "Clotilda" example:The most famous example of a slave ship that was deliberately sunk is the "Clotilda," which was the last known slave ship to enter the United States and was later discovered submerged in the Mobile River in Alabama.Â
Modern efforts to study shipwrecks:Today, maritime archaeologists are actively searching for and studying the wreckage of slave ships to learn more about the history of the transatlantic slave trade.Â
