African Abolitionism: The Rise and Transformations of Anti-Slavery in Africa.

Project Overview:

Slavery in 19th Century Africa
Slavery was a major institution across all African regions throughout the 19th century. To date, most research has focused on colonial anti-slavery legislation and abolitionist actions. The history of African abolitionists and their struggles to end slavery remains largely undocumented, with little written about the localized trajectories of abolitionist ideas and strategies in Africa. The EU-funded AFRAB project aims to fill this knowledge gap by studying how African ruling classes, intellectuals, commoners, enslaved persons, and persons of slave descent began to challenge the legitimacy of slavery within their societies. The findings will contribute to African and global history and slavery studies by analyzing and comparing African abolitionist ideas and anti-slavery movements.

Objective
The historiography of Euro-American abolitionism is extensive, whereas research on African abolitionism is narrow and primarily focused on European anti-slavery activities. It often assumes that African abolitionism only emerged due to European influence, which is an unfounded conclusion. AFRAB aims to address several general but critical questions:

• When and where did African abolitionist movements develop?
• Who were the main ideologues of African abolitionism?
• How did abolitionism spread, and among which groups?
• What forms of political struggle did African anti-slavery movements give rise to?

While individual African abolitionists and regional movements have received limited attention, there is no comprehensive review of the phenomenon on a continental scale. AFRAB aims to fill this gap by analyzing and comparing African abolitionist ideas and anti-slavery movements, the long-term consequences of European abolitionism, and the resilience of pro-slavery discourses.

Background
AFRAB is a 5-year research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, located in the History Department of University College London (UCL). The project’s focus contrasts with the vast historiography of Euro-American abolitionism by emphasizing African abolitionist actors, their ideas, strategies, struggles, and the networks they operated in. This research constitutes a major contribution to both African and global history.

Aims
The main aims of the AFRAB project are:

1. To contribute to historical research on abolitionism as a global phenomenon by integrating Africa into the historiography of worldwide abolition.
2. To contribute to African history by developing a comparative analysis of the spread of abolitionism in different African regions.
3. To contribute to regional historiographies by studying the actors, networks, discourses, and institutions that advanced abolitionism in specific African countries and localities.

Participating Institutions:

• UK – https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa/project
• Ethiopia –  https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa-2.
• Ghana – https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa-3
• Guinea – https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa-4
• Kenya – https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa-5
• Nigeria – https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/research/researchprojects/african-abolitionism-rise-and-transformations-antislavery-africa-6

For more information, visit the AFRAB project page.