Onslow was a Spanish vessel launched in 1789 that was taken in prize in 1795. She became a Liverpool-based slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. She made one complete slave trading voyage before a French privateer captured her in 1797 as she was just on her way to embark slaves for a second voyage.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | Onslow |
| Launched | 1789, spain |
| Acquired | 1795 by purchase of a prize |
| Captured | May 1797 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 166 (bm) |
| Complement | 19–22 |
Career
editOnslow first appeared in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1795.[1]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1795 | Cartmell | Butler & Co. | Liverpool−Africa | LR |
Voyage transporting enslaved people (1795–1796): Captain William Cartmell sailed from Liverpool on 9 November 1795, bound for the Bight of Benin.[2] In 1795, 79 vessels sailed from English ports bound for the trade in enslaved people; 59 of these vessels sailed from Liverpool.[3]
Onslow started trading on 22 January 1796, first at Porto-Novo, and then at Whydah. She left Africa on 26 May, bound for the West Indies. She stopped at Prince's Island, and arrived at Barbados on 5 August. She had embarked with 274 slaves and arrived with 274, but finally landed 271, for a 1% mortality rate. She sailed for Liverpool on 20 August and arrived there on 8 October. She had left Liverpool with 19 crew members and had suffered one crew death on her voyage.[2]
After the passage of the Slave Trade Act 1788, masters received a bonus of £100 for a mortality rate of under 2%; the ship's surgeon received £50. For a mortality rate between two and three per cent, the bonus was halved. There was no bonus if mortality exceeded 3%.[4]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1797 | Cartmell J.Bailiff |
Butler & Co. | Liverpool−Africa | LR; lengthened and raised 1795 |
Fate
editCaptain James Bailiff sailed from Liverpool on 7 May 1797, bound for West Africa.[5] In 1797, 104 vessels sailed from English ports bound for the trade in enslaved people; 90 of these vessels sailed from Liverpool.[3]
Lloyd's List reported on 26 May that a French privateer of 14 guns had captured Onslow, Giles, master, as she was sailing from Liverpool to Africa.[6][a]
In 1797, 40 British slave ships were lost, 11 of them on the way to Africa. This was the second worst year for losses after the 50 losses in 1795.[8] War, not maritime hazards nor slave resistance, was the greatest cause of vessel losses among British slave vessels.[9]
Notes
editCitations
edit- ^ LR (1795), Seq.No.O78.
- ^ a b Trans Atlantic Slave Trade Database – Onslow voyage #82966.
- ^ a b Williams (1897), p. 680.
- ^ Howley (2008), p. 151.
- ^ Trans Atlantic Slave Trade Database – Onslow voyage #82967.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 2927. 26 May 1797. hdl:2027/mdp.39015073721238.
- ^ Behrendt (1990), p. 126.
- ^ Inikori (1996), p. 62.
- ^ Inikori (1996), p. 58.
References
edit- Behrendt, Stephen D. (1990). "The Captains in the British slave trade from 1785 to 1807" (PDF). Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire. 140.
- Howley, Frank (2008). Slavers, Traders and Privateers: Liverpool, the African Trade and Revolution, 1773-1808. Countyvise. ISBN 9781901231984.
- Inikori, Joseph (1996). "Measuring the unmeasured hazards of the Atlantic slave trade: Documents relating to the British trade". Revue française d'histoire d'outre-mer. 83 (312): 53–92.
- Williams, Gomer (1897). History of the Liverpool Privateers and Letters of Marque: With an Account of the Liverpool Slave Trade. W. Heinemann.