Banastre (1787 ship)

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History
British-Red-Ensign-1707.svgGreat Britain
NameBanastre
Namesake Banastre Tarleton [1]
Owner
BuilderRingsend, port of Dublin
Launched1759
Captured1793
General characteristics [2]
Tons burthen
  • Originally:80, [3] or 93(bm)
  • After lengthening in 1789: 148 [4] (bm)
Length64 ft 8 in (19.7 m) (before lengthening in 1789)
Beam18 ft 6 in (5.6 m) (above the wales)
Depth of hold4 ft 9 in (1.4 m)
Sail planPossibly schooner at one point, then ship rig
NotesTwo decks and three masts

Banastre (occasionally misspelled Banister), was built at Ringsend, Dublin, in 1759, though under what name is unclear. By 1787 she was in the hands of the Tarletons and Daniel Backhouse of Liverpool. She made five complete voyages as a Liverpool-based slave ship in the triangular trade, transporting enslaved people from West Africa to the Caribbean. On her first voyage an incident in which one enslaver fired on her led to a landmark court case. A French warship captured her in 1793 as she was on her way from West Africa to Jamaica on her sixth voyage transporting captives.

Contents

Career

Banastre underwent a thorough repair in 1784. [3] After Parliament passed the Registry Act (1786), the Tarletons and Backhouse registered her at Liverpool (Reg. №87 of 1787). [lower-alpha 1] She entered Lloyd's Register in 1787 with J. Kenedy, master, Tarleton & Co., owners, and trade Liverpool-Africa. [3] Between 1787 and 1792, Banastre made five voyages transporting captives from West Africa to the West Indies.

1st enslaving voyage (1787–1788): On 31 March 1787 Captain Henry Kennedy sailed from Liverpool, bound for Calabar, where she would acquire captives. [6] At some point on the voyage out Thomas Smith replaced Henry Kennedy.

Smith was master when Banastre arrived at the Bight of Benin and Gulf of Guinea Islands. When she arrived at Calabar, Captain Patrick Fairweather, of Tarleton, another vessel under the ownership of the Tarleton-Backhouse partnership, and a senior captain for them, sent Banastre to the coast of Cameroon. When she arrived there some natives in a canoe approached to trade with her, but were warned off by a shot from another enslaving vessel, Othello, [lower-alpha 2] that killed one of the natives. Captain James McGauley, of Othello, had ordered the shot fired because the natives on that coast owed him a debt and he had declared that he would permit no trade until they had paid him. In 1793 the case of Tarleton and others vs. McGauley came to trial with the plaintiffs suing McGauley for loss of trade. [lower-alpha 3] The court found for the plaintiffs, establishing that it is a tort "to cause damage to a person by maliciously using any unlawful means, (e.g. fraud, or threats of assault), to induce anyone to abstain from entering into a contract with him." [8]

Smith sailed Banastre on to Grenada, arriving on 22 October 1787. She had embarked 210 captives and she landed 187, for a mortality rate of 11%. [6] There Thomas Smith registered the change of master. [2] Banastre sailed from Grenada on 9 November 1787 and arrived back at Liverpool on 3 January 1788. She had left with 22 crew members and had suffered one crew death on the voyage. [6]

2nd enslaving voyage (1788–1789): On 26 May 1788 Samuel Bowskill replaced Smith as commander of Banastre. [2] He sailed from Liverpool on 11 June, bound for the Gold Coast. Banastre started acquiring captives at Cape Coast Castle on 4 August, and sailed for the West Indies on 10 September. She arrived at Grenada in November, and was back at Liverpool on 2 February 1789. She had left with 24 crew members and she suffered one crew death on the voyage. [6]

3rd enslaving voyage (1789–1790): Captain Bowskill sailed from Liverpool on 22 May 1789, this time to the Bight of Biafra and Gulf of Guinea islands. Banastre acquired captives at Calabar and New Calabar. Bowskill died on 12 November. [9] Captain John K. Williams replaced Bowskill as master. She arrived at Kingston, Jamaica, on 19 December and landed 164 captives there. Banastre sailed from Kingston on 15 February 1790 and arrived at Liverpool on 25 April. She had left Liverpool with 25 crew members and she suffered four crew deaths on the voyage. [6]

4th enslaving voyage (1790–1791): In 1790 her master was "C. Bowskill", changing to J. Rigmaiden. [4] Captain Rigmaiden sailed from Liverpool on 16 October 1810, bound for the Bight of Biafra and Gulf of Guinea islands. She acquired captives at New Calabar and carried them to Dominica. [6] On 24 June 1791 Banastre arrived in Dominica from New Calabar with 170 captives: 79 men, 55 women, 23 girls, and 13 boys. [lower-alpha 4] Banastre sailed from Dominica on 8 July, and arrived back at Liverpool on 15 August. She had left Liverpool with 21 crew members and she suffered three deaths on the voyage. [6]

5th enslaving voyage (1791–1792): Captain James Harrocks replaced Rigmaiden. He sailed from Liverpool on 18 November 1791, and started acquiring captives at Bonny Island 21 January 1792. Banstre left Africa on 30 April and arrived at Dominica on 12 June where she landed 239 captives. She had embarked 295, but 53 had died before she even left the African coast. [10] [lower-alpha 5] A further three had died on the Middle Passage. She sailed from Dominica on 2 July and arrived back at Liverpool on 1 August. She had left with 22 crew members and she suffered two deaths on the voyage. [6]

Loss

In 1793 Banastre's master was J. Davies, who replaced Harrocks. [11] [12] Captain Davies sailed from Liverpool on 24 November 1792, on Banastre's 6th enslaving voyage. [6] In 1793, 68 British vessels sailed on enslaving voyages.

Lloyd's List reported on 6 August 1793 that a French frigate of 44 guns had captured Banastre as she was sailing from London to Jamaica, and had taken her into Santo Domingo. [13]

In 1793, 17 British enslaving vessels were lost, nine of them in the Middle Passage, while sailing between Africa and the West Indies. [14] During the period 1793 to 1807, war, rather than maritime hazards or resistance by the captives, was the greatest cause of vessel losses among British enslaving vessels. [15]

In 1793, the slave trade did particularly well as Jamaica alone imported 23,000 captives that year. The total for 1791 to 1795 was just under 80,000 captives imported, though perhaps some 15,000 were transshipped to Cuba. [16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Between 1786 and 1804, John Tarleton and Daniel Backhouse owned 39 vessels, half of which were engaged in the slave trade. [5]
  2. ↑ Othello was a ship of 122 tons (bm), launched at Liverpool in 1786. [7]
  3. ↑ In the description of the case, Banastre is rendered as Banister. [8]
  4. ↑ If one takes the 170 as the number of captives landed, and estimate that she loaded 210, the mortality rate was in excess of 15%. [10]
  5. ↑ The mortality rate was about 19%.

Citations

  1. ↑ Thomas (1997), p. 516.
  2. 1 2 3 Craig & Jarvis (1967), p. 72.
  3. 1 2 3 Lloyd's Register (1787), Seq. №B457.
  4. 1 2 Lloyd's Register (1790), Seq. №B21.
  5. ↑ Thomas (1997), p. 510.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Trans Atlantic Slave Trade Voyages Database: Banastre.
  7. ↑ Craig & Jarvis (1967), p. 44.
  8. 1 2 Kenny (1908), pp. 524–6.
  9. ↑ Behrendt (1990), p. 133.
  10. 1 2 Campbell (2007), pp. 27–8.
  11. ↑ Lloyd's Register (1792), Seq. №B211.
  12. ↑ Lloyd's Register (1793), Seq. №B21.
  13. ↑ Lloyd's List №5231.
  14. ↑ Inikori (1996), p. 62.
  15. ↑ Inikori (1996), p. 58.
  16. ↑ Thomas (1997), p. 531.

Related Research Articles

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Othello was launched in 1786 at Liverpool for the African slave trade. She made some five voyages before she burnt off the coast of Africa in 1796. During her first voyage her master fired on another British slave ship, which gave rise to an interesting court case. As a letter of marque she recaptured a British ship in 1794.

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 In progress

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Amacree or Amachree, was launched in 1788 in Liverpool. She made ten voyages as a slave ship in the triangular trade, carrying enslaved people from West Africa and primarily to Dominica. On her fourth such voyage, she and five other slave ships bombarded Calabar for more than three hours to force the local native traders to lower the prices they were charging for slaves. The last press mention of Amacree occurred in 1801.

Thomas was the ship Sally that James Jones acquired in 1785. Thomas made seven voyages from Bristol as a slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved persons. On her fourth such voyage,Thomas and five other enslaving ships, bombarded Calabar for more than three hours to force the local native traders to lower the prices they were charging for captives. The French captured her in 1794 as she was on her way for her eighth voyage.

Liverpool Hero was built in France in 1777, probably as Jeune Emilia. She was taken in prize in 1780. In 1781 she entered into the triangular trade in enslaved people. From 1781 she made six complete voyages from Liverpool as a slave ship. On her fourth enslaving voyage she suffered an exceptionally high mortality rate among the captives she had embarked. Her third voyage had been marred by high mortality, but on the fourth 330 captives, 59% of the number she had embarked, died. She was lost in 1794 off the coast of Africa on her seventh voyage, probably with her crew and captives.

Bell was launched in 1788 in Liverpool. Between 1788 and 1795 she made five voyages as a Liverpool-based slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. The French captured her in 1796 on her sixth enslaving voyage after she had embarked her captives.

William was launched in Spain in 1788, almost certainly under another name. She was taken in prize in 1797. William sailed as a West Indiaman until 1800 when new owners started to sail her as a slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. She made four complete voyages as a slave ship. A report of her fourth voyage provides insight into the decision making over the planning of the voyage. Spanish privateers captured her in 1805 on her fifth slave voyage.

Doe was built in 1780, in the Thirteen Colonies, possibly under another name. She was taken in prize. Between 1783 and 1786 Doe made three complete voyages as a slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. New owners in 1787 renamed Doe to Ellen. Ellen was registered in Liverpool in 1787. Between 1789 and 1792, she made two complete enslaving voyages. A French privateer captured her in 1793 as she was on her way to the West Indies having embarked captives in Africa on her sixth slaving voyage.

Golden Age was launched at Havana in 1779, almost certainly under another name. She was taken in prize circa 1783. From late 1783 she sailed from Liverpool as a slave ship in the triangular trade in enslaved people. She made four complete voyages. On her third her captives rebelled, but were unsuccessful. A French private frigate captured her in 1793 after she had disembarked her captives from her fifth enslaving voyage. Her captors took her into Philadelphia where she was sold to a French owner who named her Republican, and sailed her to France.

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Brothers was launched in the Thirteen Colonies in 1772, probably under another name. From 1785 she became a Bristol-based slave ship. She made six complete voyages in the triangular trade, in all embarking 1880 enslaved people. The French captured her in December 1794 as she was on the first leg of her seventh such voyage and before she had embarked any captives. The main source for this article provided detail on crew turnover and death rates for her first three voyages. The first voyage had a particularly heavy mortality rate among the crew. The main source also provided data for her fourth, fifth, and sixth voyages for mortality rates on the Middle Passage among the enslaved people that she was carrying.

References

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