Dutch Historian Henk den Heijer Says "Overseas Slavery Less Cruel Than People Think"

Dutch professor Henk den Heijer says "overseas slavery less cruel than people think and the cruel image of slavery developed over time too moralistic.

Slavery wasn't as cruel as we thought? Huh? That's what one Dutch historian said. Here's the article in its entirety from Radio Netherlands Worldwide:

While calls for an apology for the slave trade are growing louder in the Netherlands, a Dutch historian has drawn an unpopular conclusion: overseas slavery was less cruel than people think. Dutch Professor Henk den Heijer believes the cruel image of slavery that has developed over the centuries is too moralistic.

Slaves spent weeks at sea, shoulder to shoulder chained up in the ship’s hold without fresh air. They were beaten and fed poorly. Women were sexually abused and there was no medical care.

“This cruel image formed in around 1800,” says Professor Den Heijer, “during the debate to abolish slavery. You mainly see interviews, books and pamphlets written by people who supported the abolition of slavery and emphasised the bad side of the trade. Those sources have become the standard for its history.”

Doctor at hand

Professor Den Heijer has uncovered a different image by looking in the archive of a shipping company, the Middelburgse Commercie Compagnie (MCC). It was the largest shipping company to transport slaves in the Netherlands in the 18th century with 113 ships. The archive is unique, painting a picture of life on board the ships which took slaves from Africa to America.

The ships’ logs in the archive reveal a different story: on board the ships slaves were treated as well as the crew. A doctor was at hand for both the crew and the slaves and they were fed well. It was logical from a commercial point of view to treat slaves well.

“They were considered to be valuable. A good trader tried to get his slaves to the other side of the ocean in good condition to sell for a good price. Slavery is still morally objectionable, but that does not mean they were abused.”

Slave revolts

Abuse was the exception and officers would be punished by losing pay or being dismissed according to the ships’ logs.

Nevertheless there were slaves who revolted on board. But out of a total of 1500 trips by the MCC, this only happened 53 times. And the situation was probably the same for other counties involved in slavery like Great Britain.

Er, sorry but I beg to differ. The slaves were packed like sardines in unsanitary accommodations. Many died during the voyage and when they got to their destination, many were sold like a loaf of bread. This historian is trivializing the darkest chapter in the history of many countries.