The History of Slavery, Part 3: Christian Slaves and Muslim Masters—Barbary Pirates in the Mediterranean, 1500-1800

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 26 July 2018

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

As the trans-Atlantic slave trade from sub-Saharan Africa to the Americas began to grow in the 1500s, there was another slave trade that operated on an even larger scale in the same time period. It was the capture of Europeans by north-African Muslims. Barbary Pirates enslaved an estimated 1 million Europeans in the period from 1500 to 1800.

Enslavement was a real possibility for anyone who traveled in the Mediterranean or who lived along the shores in places like Italy, France, Spain and Portugal, and even as far north as England and Iceland. In 1632, pirates captured the Irish city of Baltimore. They and others were snatched from their homes, taken in chains to the slave markets of Algiers, and sold to the highest bidder. Some spent the rest of their lives rowing galleys. Others toiled in quarries or on farms. Attractive women were sent to harems and became a pasha's concubine.

This episode looks at a little-known chapter in the history of slavery. Although few know the stories of these captives, the threat of piracy on the Mediterranean had a huge impact on the Western World. Thomas Jefferson developed the U.S. navy to eliminate the Barbary Threat. Miguel de Cervantes spent years in North Africa. Even John Smith of Pocahontas fame was a slave in Istanbul.

Learn about this strange period in history and how it all came to an end in the early 1800s.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by History Unplug Premium.
0:03.0	The membership site that lets you get way, way more out of History Unplugged.
0:07.2	After over 250 episodes of this show, that's covered everything from prostitution and ancient
0:12.2	Sumeria to Cold War Spycraft, we've launched a special Members Only program.
0:16.9	First, if you join, you'll get complete access to the show's archives.
0:20.7	Currently, only the most recent 20 episodes are listed on the feed.
0:24.0	This includes hundreds of hours of content.
0:26.4	If you join Level 2 membership, you get Members Only episodes.
0:29.6	This includes a multi-part series on the life of Audimurfy,
0:33.0	the most decorated soldier in World War II in Hollywood star,
0:36.0	in Ottoman Lives, where I spend episodes looking at the cast of characters that made up the
0:39.7	Ottoman Empire, such as the Sultan, the Unic, the Conkybine, and the soldier.
0:44.2	If you join at Level 3 membership, you get a personal shout out at the end of every episode
0:48.7	for you or your business, and you get three hardcovered history books as a bonus.
0:52.8	You can learn more about History Unplugged Premium if you go to patreon.com slash unplugged.
0:58.0	That's patreon.com slash unplugged.
1:01.6	One more time so it's six in your brain patreon.com slash unplugged.
1:10.9	Welcome to the History Unplugged Podcast.
1:14.0	The unscripted show that celebrates unsung heroes,
1:17.5	myth busts historical lies, and rediscoveres the forgotten stories that changed our world.
1:24.1	I'm your host, Scott Rank.
1:28.7	On June 17th, 1631, two ships sailed out of Algiers.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from History Unplugged, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of History Unplugged and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.