Way of Death: Merchant Capitalism and the Angolan Slave Trade, 1730-1830 - Softcover

"Way of Death . . . [opens] up in profuse detail and at considerable length the history of the Portuguese South Atlantic empire. . . . We meet African traders dependent on credit extended by Portuguese merchants supplying slaves to Brazilian shippers who were trying to become merchants on their own. And in the background is the shadowy . . . presence of English capital."--Stuart B. Schwartz, New York Times Book Review "Other scholars have attempted studies of this type, but no one approaches Miller in depth."--John K. Thornton, International Journal of African Historical Studies "A landmark study in the history of the Atlantic slave trade. It will be an essential reference for anyone who writes on the trade, from whatever perspective, for years to come. . . . This book is full of rich data, especially concerning the passage from the interior to the coast, the role of Luso-Africans and Europeans in Angolan port cities, and conditions on the 'floating tombs' that carried their deathly cargoes across the Atlantic."--Phyllis M. Martin, African Economic History

Exploring the relationships between the economies of Africa, Europe, and the South Atlantic that supported the slave trade, this work focuses on the history of the trade within the context of merchant capitalism in the 18th century. It illuminates the experiences of the slaves and their suffering.