In 1788, the son of the leader of the Confederation of Futahalan in West Africa

was commanding his 2,000 troops against a neighboring military force when he was captured.

He was sold into slavery and spent the next 40 years of his life living as a slave in Mississippi.

That was until a chance meeting revealed his true identity, which eventually led to his freedom

and the involvement of the President of the United States.

Learn more about Abdul-Raman Ibrahim Ibn-Sari, the Prince who became a slave whose

emancipation became an international issue on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Over the 300 year history of the transatlantic slave trade, over 12.5 million people were

forcibly taken from their homes in Africa and brought to the Americas.

Of all of the people taken in the slave trade, almost none of them ever saw their freedom or returned

home.

Many of them never even made it across the ocean as conditions and slave ships were so horrendous.

To that extent, this episode's story is very much an aberration. It's the exception, not the rule.

Abdul-Roman Ibrahim Ibn Sori was born in 1762 in the town of Timboe in what is today the

nation of Guinea in West Africa.

He was born to one of the most noble and powerful families in all of West Africa at the time.

His father was Amir Ibrahim Sori, the leader of the Islamic State of Futajalan in the

Highlands of Central Guinea.

He was a brilliant military leader who managed to build his kingdom after defeating several neighboring tribes.

His firstborn son, Abdul-Raman, was the heir apparent to Foodajalan.

As such, he was well educated and trained.

He attended the Islamic University in Timbuktu in what

is today the nation of Mali. He studied philosophy and law and was reportedly fluent in

...