The Triangular Trade
The “Triangular Trade” is a term for the massive, three-stage transatlantic trade network that operated from the 16th to 19th centuries. It wasn’t a single specific route, but a profitable model connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
Before the Triangular Trade, West African wealth flowed north across the Sahara. Gold, ivory, and other goods traveled by camel caravan to North Africa and Europe.
But in the late 1400s, Europeans established direct trade along Africa’s Atlantic coast. Ships could carry more goods than camels, bypassing the Saharan intermediaries.
The trans-Saharan gold trade declined. In 1591, Moroccan forces crossed the desert and destroyed the Songhay Empire – the last great Sudanic power – searching for gold, leaving chaos behind.
New states like Asante, Dahomey, and Oyo rose along the coast. Gold exports shifted to the Atlantic. But soon, another commodity would dominate: enslaved Africans.
