The Atlantic slave trade 1591–1807

Some ten million Africans are shipped to the Americas and coastal kingdoms are drawn into the trade.

Map of Africa in 1700, during the The Atlantic slave trade — Border map for 1700. See the world in 1700.

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<p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Interactive map: <a href="https://chronicamaps.com/en/era/the-atlantic-slave-trade">The Atlantic slave trade 1591–1807</a> · Chronica Maps</p>

Border maps in this era

Timeline

Year	Event	Where
1591	Battle of Tondibi: the fall of Songhai	Battle of Tondibi
1652	The Dutch found Cape Town	Cape Town
1665	Battle of Mbwila	Battle of Mbwila

Battles and sites

Battle of Tondibi · 1591
Battle of Mbwila · 1665
Gorée · 1677

← Mali, Songhai and the Swahili coast Jihad states and the eve of colonialism →

Notable people of the Atlantic slave trade

Lived	Person
c. 1583 – 1663	Queen Nzinga	Queen of Ndongo and Matamba
c. 1660 – 1717	Osei Tutu	Founder of the Asante Empire

Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.