From as early as the mild- fifteenth century the Europeans, first the Portuguese had already established contact with some people in later date. Nigeria, these were mainly those on the coast such as the BINIS. These early contacts were Inspired by commercial and religious considerations. In these early stages, there was also diplomatic respect on the part of the EUROPEANS for the Nigerian potentates and the states. A cataclysmic Development In the relations between some Nigeria People and the Europeans occured from the 16th Century, and this was in the form of the development of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.
The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade dominated coastal Nigerians relations with EUROPEANS, especially the British, for close to three centuries from the late 16th century. It was only in the early decades of the 19th century that the British abolished the trade and took concrete steps to suppress it, through the operations of the British West African Naval Squadron.
While it lasted, the trade involved the purchase of Africans, including people from present day Nigeria, and their forced transportation through the Atlantic Ocean to the New World 🌎, that is the Americas. In the Americas, these Africans and their descendants were explicatively made to generate the Wealth of the Europe and America, they were considered and treated as human chattels, that's slave. This trade had devastating consequences for the course of the history of the areas that were involved in it. Among other things, it led to Forced depopulation of the areas, through the physical removal of the people and also through the deaths that occurred in the course of the numerous wars that were now deliberately precipitated in order to procure captives for sale; it also led to Disruption of the peace of the area, a situation which in itself created uncertainty among the people and lack of the interest in investment; the areas Economy also suffered from the removal of the Virile and string makes and females that would have helped oiled the engine of the development of the areas; and in certain cases of negatively affected the political fortune of some states. It should be noted in this last regard, that in certain cases, like in the Niger- Delta Coastal area of Nigeria it helped some states to grow.
Some of the trade practices that existed in the slave trade era were later transferred to Next era , refers to the era of LEGITIMATE COMMERCE, during which period the British and other European now bought produce such as palm oil and groundnuts from the people of West African including Nigeria.
In the era of the slave trade, Africans had a major say in the conduct of the trade, and the European traders often paid homage to leaders Of the various states by the way of "comey" or presents, which they gave them. Terms of rare were also mutually agreed upon. In all, African Independence was hardly tampered with. It was during the period of legitimate COMMERCE that the Europeans, in the case of Nigerian people's, the British, got more directly involved in the affairs of the African States. This shift in policy caner crust by the way of "Gun-biag " politics, by which " erring' African states were threatened with attack, and in the some cases actually attacked. It was in this circumstances that the British first formerly Annexed Nigerian territory m, when in 1861 British took lagos as a colony. It was later in the 19th century that the bulk of Nigeria territory was occupied by the Britain through dubious treaties that were signed with some Nigerian potentates and more regularly through the Military conquest and deportation of the states and their rulers respectively.
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If you read through it's an interesting story. But you can gain insight of how Trading began in the overall compared to our present Blockchain Technology. Then it was physical today we trade digital currency without human exploitation rather creating a better world for everyone.
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