Slave trade in the Sudan in the nineteenth century and its suppression in the years 1877–80

Abstract

The subject of slavery and the slave trade in the Sudan during the nineteenth century has been discussed in a number of books and articles.' As a rule these do not analyse the struggle to suppress the slave trade itself, but refer mainly to the social and economic aspects of the institution of slavery, and to the various domestic and external political developments that occurred as a result of that struggle during Charles Gordon's Governor-Generalship in the years 1877-80. There exists to date a controversy between the scholars as to Gordon's success in suppressing the slave trade. While he did, according to Richard Hill, succeed in repressing and diminishing the trade, it all but stopped,2 Abbas Ibrahim Muhammad Ali claims that Gordon's policy resulted not only in his own participation in this activity but also, to some extent, in the encouragement of this venture. Hence, whatever measures he did apply toward destroying the traders meant that his achievements were partial and temporary, and lasted for a short time only.3 The need arises therefore to inquire into Gordon's policy and actions toward the issue and to evaluate his success in the struggle against the slave traders. External and domestic factors contributed to the growth and development of the slave trade in the Sudan during the nineteenth century. The external ones emerged from the demand for slaves which came from different parts of the Ottoman empire, especially from the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt and Istanbul. This demand coincided with Muhammad Ali's desire to acquire Sudanese slaves in order to incorporate them into his newly built army, which was one of the main reasons behind his conquest of the Sudan in 1820-21. As a result of this combined conjectural pressure, the Turco-Egyptian domination introduced profound socio-economic changes that influenced all the spheres of life of the local population of Sudan, and not only generated a great demand for slaves but stimulated also a large group of Sudanese to turn to trade in them.4 The Turco-Egyptian intervention in the Sudanese economy and the heavy taxes levied on the local agrarian and suburban population resulted