Introduction

People give different meanings to the word “slavery”. There are many forms of slavery with different rules. When people speak of slavery, they usually refer to chattel slavery. This was the form of slavery used in the USA and in the Cape Colony. In 1910, the Cape Colony became part of the Union of South Africa.

This website will focus on slavery as practised in the Cape Colony between 1658 and 1834.
Chattel slaves were captured and enslaved in faraway countries and transported over long distances. They were owned and could be sold or transferred to other owners without their permission and without receiving any compensation.

Introduction
What is slavery?
Why remember slavery?
Sources of slave history
The world that slaves lived in
Slave routes to Cape Town
The work of slaves
Private lives of slaves
The slave experience
Control & Resistance
Emancipation
After emancipation
Legacy of slavery
Does slavery still exist today?
Glossary

Development by Logos Flow \ Design by Matt Hindley \ Copyright © 2002 Iziko Museums of Cape Town