Slavery in Portugal

Slavery in Portugal existed since before the country's formation. During the pre-independence period, inhabitants of the current Portuguese territory were often enslaved and enslaved others. After independence, during the existence of the Kingdom of Portugal, the country played a leading role in the Atlantic slave trade, which involved the mass trade and transportation of slaves from Africa and other parts of the world to the Americas. The import of black slaves was banned in European Portugal in 1761 by the Marquis of Pombal, and at the same time, the trade of black slaves to Brazil was encouraged, with the support and direct involvement of the Marquis. Slavery in Portugal was only abolished in 1869.

The Atlantic slave trade began circa 1336 or 1341, when Portuguese traders brought the first canarian slaves to Europe. In 1526, Portuguese mariners carried the first shipload of African slaves to Brazil in the Americas, establishing the triangular Atlantic slave trade.

History

Ancient era

Main article: Slavery in ancient Rome

Slavery was a major economic and social institution in Europe during the classical era and a great deal is known about the ancient Greeks and Romans in relation to the topic. Rome added Portugal to its empire (2nd century BC), the latter a province of Lusitania at the time, and the name of the future kingdom was derived from "Portucale", a Roman and post-Roman settlement situated at the mouth of the Douro River. The details of slavery in ancient Rome slavery in Roman Portugal are not well-known; however, there were several forms of slavery, including enslaved miners and domestic servants.

Visigothic and Suebi kingdoms

The Visigoths and the Suebi (Germanic tribes), of the 5th century AD, seized control of the Iberian Peninsula as the Roman Empire fell. At the time, Portugal did not exist as a separate kingdom, but was primarily a part of the Visigothic Iberian kingdom (the Visigothic ruling class lived apart and heavily taxed the native population). However, during this period, a gradual transition to feudalism and serfdom was occurring throughout Europe.

Islamic Iberia

Main article: Slavery in al-Andalus

See also: Slavery in Al-Andalus, Prague slave trade, Saqaliba, and Slavery in Spain

After the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in the 8th century, in which Moors from North Africa crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and defeated the Visigothic rulers of Iberia, the territory of both modern-day Portugal and Spain fell under Islamic control. The pattern of slavery and serfdom in the Iberian Peninsula differs from the rest of Western Europe due to the Islamic conquest. They established Moorish kingdoms in Iberia, including the area that is occupied by modern Portugal. Islamic Ibera became known as al-Andalus.

Al-Andalus was described in the Muslim world as the "land of jihad" or dar al-harb, a religious border land in a state of constant war with the infidels (kafir), which by Islamic Law was a legitimate zone for enslavement, and slaves were termed as coming from three different zones in Christian Iberia: Galicians from the northwest, Basques or Vascones from the central north, and Franks from the northeast and France.

Trade ties between the Moorish kingdoms and the North African Moorish state led to a greater flow of trade within those geographical areas. In addition, the Moors engaged sections of Spaniards and Portuguese Christians in slave labor. The Moors used ethnic European slaves: 1/12 of Iberian population were slave Europeans, less than 1% of Iberia were Moors and more than 99% were native Iberians. Periodic Arab and Moorish raiding expeditions were sent from Islamic Iberia to ravage the remaining Christian Iberian kingdoms, bringing back stolen goods and slaves.

The medieval Iberian Peninsula was the scene of episodic warfare among Muslims and Christians during the reconquista. Periodic raiding expeditions were sent from Al-Andalus to ravage the Christian Iberian kingdoms, bringing back booty and people. For example, in a raid on Lisbon in 1189 the Almohad caliph Yaqub al-Mansur took 3,000 female and child captives, and his governor of Córdoba took 3,000 Christian slaves in a subsequent attack upon Silves in 1191. In the Almohad raid to Evora in Portugal in 1181–82, 400 women were taken captives and put for sale in the slave market of Seville. The governor of Córdoba, in a subsequent attack upon Silves, held 3,000 Christian slaves in 1191. In addition, the Christian Iberians who lived within Arab and Moorish-ruled territories were subject to specific laws and taxes for state protection.

Reconquista

Main article: Reconquista

Muslim Moors who converted to Christianity, known as Moriscos, were enslaved by the Portuguese during the Reconquista; 9.3 per cent of slaves in southern Portugal were Moors and many Moors were enslaved in 16th-century Portugal. It has been documented that other slaves were treated better than Moriscos, the slaves were less than 1% of population.

After the Reconquista period, Moorish slaves began to outnumber Slavic slaves in both importance and numbers in Portugal.

Age of Discovery

Main articles: Atlantic slave trade and Ghazi (warrior)

Background

Origins of Slavery in the Iberian Peninsula

The prolonged conflicts between Moors and Christians on the Iberian Peninsula, driven by struggles for survival, laid the groundwork for the emergence of slavery as a byproduct of relentless violence. This historical context set the stage for Portugal's slave trade, which began out of economic and military necessities and expanded gradually. By the early 15th century, southern Portugal faced severe labor shortages in its sugarcane fields, causing escalating labor costs and prompting complaints from landowners as farmers abandoned the land. This economic strain led to the arrival of the first ship carrying captives from the Sahara coast in 1441, marking the integration of Moorish slaves as an essential labor force in Portuguese agriculture and spurring the development of slavery laws.

Slavery in Islamic Military Campaigns

Centuries earlier, during the 11th to 13th centuries, the Almoravid and Almohad invasions of Iberia introduced another dimension to slavery, with non-Islamized West African Black slaves imported as soldiers and organized into military units. This practice was underpinned by figures like Islamic scholar Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406), who dehumanized Black slaves by likening them to animals, providing a racial justification for their enslavement. Similarly, Islamic states highly valued Christian slaves as prized spoils of war, often noting that those redeemed through ransom returned profoundly altered, stripped of individuality and autonomy.

Economic Pressures and the Rise of the Slave Trade

Meanwhile, Portugal's own system of serfdom was waning by the 13th century, with peasants enjoying unrestricted mobility, reflecting a shift in labor dynamics that contrasted with the growing reliance on enslaved labor. This evolving economic landscape culminated in Portugal's 1415 conquest of Ceuta, a Muslim city in Morocco, which, while failing to secure control over Moroccan wheat production, proved a pivotal moment in expanding Portuguese maritime dominance, further intertwining slavery with the nation's economic and imperial ambitions.

African slaves prior to 1441 were predominately Berbers and Arabs from the North African Barbary Coast, known as "Moors" to the Iberians. They were typically enslaved during wars and conquests between Christian and Islamic kingdoms. The first Portuguese raids (around 1336) in search of slaves and loot took place in the Canary Islands, inhabited by a pagan people of Berber origin, the Guanches, who resisted bravely.

Strategic Disruption of the Moorish Slave Trade

In the early 15th century, purchasing slaves primarily meant rescuing Christians enslaved by Muslim conquests. The military activities of Islamic states were closely tied to the slave trade, and weakening slave traders was seen as a way to undermine Moorish conquerors' military power. To break the Moorish monopoly on the slave trade, Portugal outlawed the enslavement of Christians and banned the trade of non-Christian slaves handled by Moorish traders. As part of its military strategy, Portugal encouraged its citizens and allied pagans to purchase slaves, aligning economic actions with efforts to weaken Muslim dominance.

Black slaves

The illegal Portuguese slave ship Diligenté with 600 slaves onboard, May 1838

The first expeditions of Sub-Saharan Africa were sent out by Prince Infante D. Henrique, known commonly today as Henry the Navigator, with the intent to probe how far the kingdoms of the Moors and their power reached. The expeditions sent by Henry came back with black slaves as a way to compensate for the expenses of their voyages. The enslavement of black people was seen as a military campaign because the people that the Portuguese encountered were identified as Moorish and thus associated with Islam. The royal chronicler Gomes Eanes de Zurara was never decided on the "Moorishness" of the slaves brought back from Africa, due to a seeming lack of contact with Islam. Slavery in Portugal and the number of slaves expanded after the Portuguese began an exploration of Sub-Saharan Africa.

Prince Infante D. Henrique began selling African slaves in Lagos in 1444. In 1455, Pope Nicholas V gave Portugal the rights to continue the slave trade in West Africa, under the provision that they convert all people who are enslaved. The Portuguese soon expanded their trade along the whole west coast of Africa. Infante D Henrique held the monopoly on all expeditions to Africa granted by the crown until his death in 1460. Afterward, any ship sailing for Africa required authorization from the crown. All slaves and goods brought back to Portugal were subject to duties and tariffs. Slaves were baptized before shipment. Their process of enslavement, which was viewed by critics as cruel, was justified by the conversion of the enslaved to Christianity.

The high demand for slaves was due to a shortage of laborers in Portuguese colonies such as Brazil, Cape Verde, Angola and Mozambique. Records of both royal institutions responsible for the sale of black enslaved people, the Casa de Guiné and the Casa dos Escravos were damaged during the earthquake of 1755 in Lisbon, and the fiscal records containing the numbers and sales of these companies were destroyed. The records of the royal chronicler Zurara claim that 927 African slaves were brought to Portugal between 1441 and 1448.

The majority of Africans were servants but some were considered as trustworthy and responsible slaves. Because of Portugal's small population, Portuguese colonization of the new world was only possible with a large number of slaves they had acquired to be shipped overseas. In the late 15th and into the 16th centuries, the Portuguese economic reliance on slaves was less in question than the sheer number of slaves found in Portugal. People wishing to purchase slaves in Portugal had two sources, the royal slaving company, the Casa da Guiné, or from slave merchants who had purchased their slaves through the Casa de Guiné to sell as retail. There were up to 70 slave merchants in Lisbon in the 1550s. Slave auctions occurred in the town or market square, or in the streets of central Lisbon. The sale of slaves was compared by observers as similar to the sale of horses or livestock. The laws of commerce regarding slavery address them as merchandise or objects. There was a period of time set upon purchase for the buyer to decide if he is happy with the slave he had purchased.

The occupations of slaves varied widely. Some slaves in Lisbon could find themselves working in domestic settings, but most worked hard labor in the mines and metal forges, while others worked at the docks loading and maintaining ships. Some slaves worked peddling cheap goods at the markets and returning the profits to their masters. Opportunities for slaves were scarce and female slaves could be freed if their masters chose to marry them, but this was only common in the colonies. When Lisbon was on the verge of being invaded in 1580, slaves were promised their freedom in exchange for their military service. 440 slaves took the offer and most, after being freed, left Portugal. Slavery did little to alter society in Portugal, due to the slight ease of enslaved people's integration, those who did not assimilate were treated similarly to the poor with most being shipped to Brazil to work in the sugar cane plantation.

Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database

The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database (TSTD), compiled over 40 years by historians Stephen Behrendt, David Eltis, David Richardson, and Manolo Florentino, is considered the most recent and reliable source for African slave trade statistics. Comprising data from 36,000 slave trade voyages, it covers over 80% of such voyages and is highly regarded in peer-reviewed academic journals for its rigorous research.

The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database (TSTD)

	Spain / Uruguay	Portugal / Brazil	Great Britain	Netherlands	U.S.A.	Total
1501-1550	31,738	32,387	0	0	0	64,125
1551-1600	88,223	121,804	1,922	1,365	0	213,380
1601-1650	127,089	469,128	33,695	33,528	824	667,894
1651-1700	18,461	542,064	394,567	186,373	3,327	1,207,738
1701-1750	0	1,011,143	964,639	156,911	37,281	2,560,634
1751-1800	10,654	1,201,860	1,580,658	173,103	152,023	3,933,984
1801-1850	568,815	2,460,570	283,959	3,026	111,395	3,647,971

Asians

Main article: Nanban trade

See also: Chinese people in Portugal, Indians in Portugal, Chinese people in Spain, Chinese immigration to Mexico, and Japanese Mexicans

Historical Context

Papal and Royal Decrees applicable to Asians

In 1537, Pope Paul III’s Sublimis Deus prohibited enslaving American indigenous peoples and future unknown or pagan populations. The 1542 New Laws of the Indies extended this to East Asians, legally classified as "Indians." King Sebastian I banned Japanese human trafficking in 1571, following a 1567 law prohibiting slave trade from Ethiopia, Japan, and China. In 1591, Pope Gregory XIV’s Bulla Cum Sicuti ordered compensation and liberation for enslaved "Indians of the Philippines", with excommunication for non-compliant owners. By 1595, Portugal banned Chinese and Japanese slave trading, and in 1605, King Philip III allowed Japanese slaves in Goa and Cochin to seek court-ordered liberation and banned female slave transport to Mexico.

Portuguese Just War Doctrine

Japanese and Chinese slaves were explicitly excluded from the category of captives of a "just war" (iustae captivitas) and did not qualify as general slaves under Portuguese law. Only temporary servitude (temporali famulitium), such as fixed-term indentured labor, was permitted for them. This allowed freed slaves to potentially become subjects of the Portuguese crown, a privilege not extended to others.

Unlike Japanese and Chinese individuals, Moors—due to centuries of conflict with Portugal—and African Muslims or non-Muslims, critical to Portugal’s economic interests, were excluded from these "just war" considerations, facing harsher enslavement policies without the possibility of temporary servitude or integration.

In 1555, Portuguese Dominican friar Fernão de Oliveira published A Arte da Guerra do Mar (The Art of Naval Warfare), arguing that a just war against non-Christians could only be waged against nations invading formerly Christian territories. In 1556, his work Por que causas se pode mover guerra justa contra infieis (On the Just Causes for Waging War Against Infidels), likely addressed to King João III, framed just wars against non-Christians as purely political acts, not religious crusades, justified to defend communal lands or punish crimes.

The justification for conquest shifted from papal authority to political decisions, legitimizing actions like trade with Moors, previously forbidden by canon law, by labeling them "enemies of Christ".

Bishop Cerqueira addressed voluntary servitude, likely referring to Japan’s nenkihōkō (fixed-term indentured servitude). He confirmed that Japanese individuals met the moral theology criteria for voluntary servitude, as outlined by Silvestre Mazzolini’s six conditions, ensuring such practices aligned with ethical standards.

Dynamics of the Global Slave Trade

By the early 16th century, a robust African slave trade network supplied the Atlantic islands and southern Portugal, benefiting from low costs due to proximity. Finding willing suppliers in Africa was straightforward, facilitating large-scale trade.

In contrast, Portuguese Asian territories lacked large plantations, limiting slave demand to domestic labor and high-value roles like artisans or status symbols. High transport costs and the profitability of the spice trade reduced interest in large-scale Asian slave trading, with no significant trade to supply South American or Portuguese plantations.

Demographic Composition

Historian Tatiana Seijas, who created a database of the origins of slaves sent from the Philippines to Acapulco, notes that many Asian slaves originated from regions like India and Bengal, where the Portuguese had established a presence.

In Mexico City, East Asians ("indios chinos") were a small minority, with women comprising 22%. One-third were enslaved, mostly from the Philippines and India, with minimal numbers from Japan, Brunei, or Java.

The Asian slave trade was far smaller than the Atlantic trade. A 1595 Inquisition survey in Mexico City recorded 10,000 black slaves but only 88 Asian slaves. From 1565 to 1673, an estimated 3,630 "indios chinos" slaves entered New Spain, with galleons averaging 30 slaves per voyage, underscoring the limited scale of Asian slavery.

Slave Transport Capacity of Portguese Ship

In 1570, King Sebastian I restricted ship construction to vessels between 300 and 450 tons to standardize maritime operations. At its peak, Portugal’s fleet never exceeded 300 ships, and between 1585 and 1597, only 34 of 66 ships sent to India returned safely, highlighting the dangers of these voyages.

The largest nau ships, with a cargo capacity of 600 tons (1,100 tons displacement in modern terms), could carry 400–450 people, including crew, passengers, slaves, and soldiers. For example, a nau or galleon with a cargo capacity of 900 tons or more, accommodated 77 crew members, 18 gunners, 317 soldiers, and 26 families. Operating on an annual Macau-Japan route due to trade winds, these ships used a single vessel to maximize profits, transporting 1,000–2,500 picos of silk (60–150 tons, occupying 250–400 cubic meters) alongside armaments, supplies, and personnel. The number of slaves carried fluctuated based on Japanese cargo, such as sulfur, silver, seafood, swords, and lacquerware.

Historian Lúcio de Sousa has evaluated the slave-carrying capacity of these ships, but Guillaume Carré argues that fragmented and imprecise data make reliable estimates difficult, limiting the ability to reconstruct accurate figures.

The Study of Asian and Japanese Slavery

Since Deborah Oropeza Keresey’s 2007 doctoral dissertation, interest in Asian slavery among Mexican and American historians has surged. Keresey’s work, utilizing primary and secondary Mexican sources, meticulously documented the inflow of Asian slaves to Central America, earning recognition as the most accurate study to date. In 2008, Tatiana Seijas furthered this research with her Yale dissertation, reinforcing the growing academic focus.

The earliest historiographical study on Japanese slavery is attributed to Yoshitomo Okamoto’s Studies in the History of 16th-Century Japan-Europe Interactions (1936, revised 1942–1944). C.R. Boxer’s Fidalgos in the Far East (1550–1771) (1948) highlighted the diverse labor forms, such as mercenaries and merchants, obscured by the term “slave” and their connection to Portuguese slave trade practices. Subsequent Japanese studies, including Hidemasa Maki’s Human Trafficking (1971) and Hisashi Fujiki’s Battlefields of Common Soldiers: Medieval Mercenaries and Slave Hunting (1995), attempted to elucidate these dynamics using Japanese sources.

Lúcio de Sousa’s The Portuguese Slave Trade in Early Modern Japan (2019) is a recent ambitious study on Japanese and Korean slavery. While praised for its scope, it has faced criticism. Historian Harriet Zurndorfer critiques de Sousa for citing unreliable Portuguese anecdotes and reports without robust explanation or verifiable references, casting doubt on the book’s claims. Guillaume Carré, a specialist in early modern Japanese socioeconomic history, argues that de Sousa’s focus on Western sources neglects extensive Japanese research on pre-Portuguese slavery practices, limiting insights into Japan’s historical servitude and the unique role of Portuguese involvement.

Richard B. Allen notes that de Sousa fails to adequately contextualize his research, missing the connection between micro- and macro-historical perspectives. This rush to highlight new sources results in a “seeing the trees but missing the forest” approach. Similarly, Historian Romulo Ehalt observes that Sousa manipulated historical evidence to align with his own reasoning. This selective use of sources to bolster his theory is problematic, as it prioritizes narrative over historical accuracy. Ehalt also highlights contradictions in Sousa’s claims, further eroding their credibility.

Japanese

Slavery Before Portuguese Arrival

During the Sengoku period, Japanese Daimyos and merchants often sold off prisoners of battle into slavery. Portuguese sources, corroborated by Japanese texts like Koyo Gunkan and Hojo Godaiki, describe “the greatest cruelties” inflicted during conflicts such as the 1553 Battle of Kawanakajima and the 1578 Shimazu campaigns. Captives, particularly women, boys, and girls, faced violence, with communities in regions devastated. The inter-Asian slave trade, including wokou piracy, further intensified suffering, with Zheng Shungong’s 1556 report noting 200–300 Chinese slaves in Satsuma treated “like cattle” for labor, a fate shared by many Japanese.

The custom of geninka (下人化) encompassed practices resembling slavery. Individuals were exchanged for money, including children sold by parents, self-sold persons, those rescued from unjust execution, and debt-bound workers. Japanese rulers imposed geninka as punishment for serious crimes or rebellion, often extending it to the perpetrator’s wife and children. Women who fled their fathers or husbands to seek shelter in a lord’s house were sometimes transformed into genin by the lord. During famines or natural disasters, individuals offered themselves as genin in exchange for food, clothing, and shelter. Japanese lords also demanded that retainers relinquish their daughters to serve in their manors, treating them as genin. Additionally, the genin status could be hereditary, perpetuating bondage across generations.

Missionary Interventions and the 1567 Goa Council

The 1567 Goa Council advised missionaries to recommend the release of Japanese servants (下人) once their labor matched the compensation provided, particularly during famines or disasters when individuals offered labor for protection. The Council allowed Christians to ransom criminals sentenced to death unjustly, with the rescued serving as servants in return, since no one could be forced to provide funds without compensation. Jesuits also advised against enslaving the wives and children of punished criminals and supported freeing women who sought refuge from abusive fathers or husbands, except in cases of serious crimes, despite Japanese customs permitting their enslavement.

Japanese Slave System and Christian Critiques

In 1587, Japanese visitors to Manila confirmed that Japan’s slave system followed the Ritsuryō legal code, where children inherited their parents’ status, transferring ownership to masters. Bishop Cerqueira criticized heavy taxes by non-Christian lords that forced parents to sell children, highlighting that child sales occurred even outside extreme circumstances, which missionaries viewed as problematic.

Nanban Trade

After the Portuguese first made contact with Japan in 1543, a large-scale slave trade developed in the Nanban trade, one of the Portuguese trade includes the Portuguese purchase of Japanese that sold them to various locations overseas, including Portugal itself, the Nanban trade existed throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. Many documents mention the large slave trade along with protests against the enslavement of Japanese. Japanese slaves are believed to be the first of their nation to end up in Europe, and the Portuguese purchased large numbers of Japanese slave girls to bring to Portugal for sexual purposes, as noted by the Church in 1555. King Sebastian feared that it was having a negative effect on Catholic proselytization since the slave trade in Japanese was growing to large proportions, so he commanded that it be banned in 1571. Records of three Japanese slaves dating from the 16th century, named Gaspar Fernandes, Miguel and Ventura who ended up in Mexico showed that they were purchased by Portuguese slave traders in Japan, brought to Manila from where they were shipped to Mexico by their owner Perez.

More than several hundred Japanese, especially women, were sold as slaves. Portuguese visitors so often engaged in slavery in Japan and occasionally South Asian and African crew members were taken to Macau and other Portuguese colonies in Southeast Asia, the Americas, and India, where there was a community of Japanese slaves and traders in Goa by the early 17th century, many of whom became prostitutes. Enslaved Japanese women were even occasionally sold as concubines to black African crew members, along with their European counterparts serving on Portuguese ships trading in Japan, mentioned by Luis Cerqueira, a Portuguese Jesuit, in a 1598 document. Hideyoshi blamed the Portuguese and Jesuits for this slave trade and banned Christian proselytizing as a result. Historians have noted, however, that anti-Portuguese propaganda was actively promoted by the Japanese, particularly with regards to the Portuguese purchases of Japanese women for sexual purposes.

Early Protests and Royal Decrees

In 1555, Portuguese merchants began enslaving Japanese individuals, prompting the Jesuit order to advocate for its cessation. Their efforts led to King Sebastian I of Portugal issuing a decree in 1571 banning the Japanese slave trade. However, enforcement was weak, and the trade persisted. During the transition from the 16th to the 17th century, under the Iberian Union, King Philip II (and later Philip III of Spain) reissued the 1571 decree at the Jesuits’ urging. Despite these royal mandates, local Portuguese elites fiercely opposed the bans, rendering them ineffective. The Jesuits, lacking the authority to enforce decrees, faced significant challenges in curbing the trade.

Jesuit Reforms and Humanitarian Compromises

Recognizing their limited power, the Jesuits sought to reform Japan’s system of perpetual slavery (永代人身売買) into indentured servitude (年季奉公). Some missionaries, driven by humanitarian concerns, signed short-term ownership certificates (schedulae) to prevent the greater harm of lifelong enslavement. This pragmatic approach, however, was controversial. By 1598, missionary participation in such practices was banned. Critics like Mateus de Couros condemned any involvement, even if motivated by compassion, highlighting the moral complexities of the Jesuits’ position.

Some Japanese chose servitude to travel to Macau or due to poverty, but many indentured servants in Macau broke contracts by fleeing to Ming territory, reducing Portuguese slave purchases. Poverty, driven by lords’ tax demands, led some to view slavery as a survival strategy, with peasants offering themselves or others as collateral for unpaid taxes, blurring the line between farmers and slaves.

Adapting to Local Realities

After 1598, Bishop Luís de Cerqueira intensified pressure on Spanish and Portuguese authorities to abolish temporary servitude of Japanese and Korean individuals, but the Portuguese slave trade reportedly grew. Jesuit Visitor Alessandro Valignano repeatedly emphasized the missionaries’ lack of authority to end the practice, noting that admonitions and decrees proved ineffective. In response, missionaries adapted to Japan’s social dynamics, distinguishing between three forms of labor: servitude akin to slavery, tolerable servitude, and unacceptable conditions. Over time, constrained by their limited influence, the Jesuits increasingly tolerated local customs to maintain their presence and impact in Japan.

The Jesuits’ efforts to combat the Japanese slave trade reflect a struggle between moral conviction and practical limitations. Despite securing royal decrees and attempting reforms, they faced resistance from Portuguese elites and the realities of Japan’s socio-political context. Their compromises, such as signing schedulae and tolerating certain forms of servitude, reveal the challenges of effecting change in a complex environment. While historian Ryōji Okamoto argues that the Jesuits should be absolved of blame due to their exhaustive efforts, their story underscores the difficulties of aligning humanitarian ideals with the constraints of power and local custom in the early modern world.

Koreans

Japanese Invasions of Korea and Thriving Slave Trade

Some Korean slaves were bought by the Portuguese and brought to Portugal from Japan, where they had been among the tens of thousands of Korean prisoners of war transported to Japan during the Japanese invasions of Korea. Historians pointed out that at the same time Hideyoshi expressed his indignation and outrage at the Portuguese trade in Japanese slaves, he himself was engaging in a mass slave trade of Korean prisoners of war in Japan. Chinese were bought in large numbers as slaves by the Portuguese in the 1520s. Japanese Christian daimyos mainly responsible for selling to the Portuguese their fellow Japanese. Japanese women and Japanese men, Javanese, Chinese, and Indians were all sold as slaves in Portugal.

Jesuit Visitor Valignano did not view the Bunroku and Keicho campaigns (1592–1598) as just wars, as Japanese conflicts followed a "might makes right" principle, ignoring the concept of just war, according to a 1594 Jesuit questionnaire sent to Europe. They believed urging Christian daimyo to return conquered territories would fail, as the daimyo saw their claims as legitimate, and questioned whether to ignore the issue to avoid conflict between Christian doctrine and Japanese customs. Valignano justified the Christian daimyo’s involvement in the war, despite its unjust nature, as they were compelled to participate due to their subjection to dictatorial ruler and the risks of refusing, which threatened their domains’ security. As responsible rulers, they were forced into an unjust war despite being good Christians.

Hideyoshi’s 1587 Bateren Edict, driven by economic concerns over labor depletion rather than moral objections, as historians like Maki Hidemasa and Romulo Ehalt noted, briefly curtailed slave trades. However, his 1597 second invasion of Korea actively endorsed the slave trade, transforming it into a major industry. Japanese slave traders captured approximately 50,000 to 60,000 Koreans as prisoners, with only 7,500 returning to Korea through postwar diplomatic efforts. Bishop Pedro Martins resolved to excommunicate Portuguese merchants involved in the trade of Japanese and Korean slaves, even for temporary servitude, a stance later strengthened by Bishop Cerqueira. Contemporary sources describe a “gruesome scenario” where Japanese merchants brought crowds of Korean prisoners to islands for sale to Portuguese merchants.

The Portuguese merchants, by conducting transactions on these islands, evaded the prohibition in Macau and the excommunication by Bishop Martins. While the Jesuits completely withdrew their desperate measure of regulating the slave trade of Portuguese merchants and made a strong statement that they would not relent in excommunicating merchants outside their jurisdiction, Hideyoshi's policies encouraged the enslavement of Koreans, effectively nullifying the previous restrictions. The 1592 Dochirina Kirishitan emphasized redeeming captives as a Christian duty, rooted in Christ’s atonement, yet Jesuits lacked the authority to enforce the prohibition of slavery, as Valignano repeatedly argued. Since their arrival in Japan, the Portuguese are estimated to have traded hundreds to thousands of Japanese slaves. However, the number of Korean slaves brought to Japan significantly exceeded this figure.

Post-War Slavery

After the 1614 Jesuit expulsion from Japan, Jesuits worked to liberate Japanese and Korean slaves, while Portuguese merchants continued the slave trade. Post-1614, Dutch and English buyers joined the trade possibly due to Portuguese trade bans. Many slaves were sold in Nagasaki and Hirado by Portuguese, Dutch, English, and Spanish traders. From their arrival in Japan until their expulsion, the Portuguese traded an estimated hundred to thousand Japanese slaves.

Chinese

Some Chinese slaves in Spain ended up there after being brought to Lisbon, Portugal, and sold when they were boys. Tristán de la China was a Chinese who was taken as a slave by the Portuguese, while he was still a boy and in the 1520s was obtained by Cristobál de Haro in Lisbon, and taken to live in Seville and Valladolid. He was paid for his service as a translator in the 1525 Loaísa expedition, during which he was still an adolescent. The survivors, including Tristan, were shipwrecked for a decade until 1537 when they were brought back by a Portuguese ship to Lisbon.

There are records of Chinese slaves in Lisbon as early as 1540. According to modern historians, the first known visit of a Chinese person to Europe dates to 1540 (or soon after), when a Chinese scholar, apparently enslaved by Portuguese raiders somewhere on the southern China coast, was brought to Portugal. Purchased by João de Barros, he worked with the Portuguese historian on translating Chinese texts into Portuguese.

In 16th-century southern Portugal there were Chinese slaves but the number of them was described as "negligible", being outnumbered by East Indian, Mourisco, and African slaves. Amerindians, Chinese, Malays, and Indians were slaves in Portugal but in far fewer number than Turks, Berbers, and Arabs. China and Malacca were origins of slaves delivered to Portugal by Portuguese viceroys. A testament from 23 October 1562 recorded a Chinese man named António who was enslaved and owned by a Portuguese woman, Dona Maria de Vilhena, a wealthy noblewoman in Évora. António was among the three most common male names given to male slaves in Évora. D. Maria owned one of the only two Chinese slaves in Évora and she specifically selected and used him from among the slaves she owned to drive her mules for her because he was Chinese since rigorous and demanding tasks were assigned to Mourisco, Chinese, and Indian slaves. D. Maria's owning a Chinese, three Indians, and three Mouriscos among her fifteen slaves reflected on her high social status, since Chinese, Mouriscos, and Indians were among the ethnicities of prized slaves and were very expensive compared to blacks, so high class individuals owned these ethnicities and it was because her former husband Simão was involved in the slave trade in the east that she owned slaves of many different ethnicities. When she died, D. Maria freed twelve of her slaves including this Chinese man in her testament, leaving them with sums from 20,000 to 10,000 réis in money. D. Maria de Vilhena was the daughter of the nobleman and explorer Sancho de Tovar, the capitão of Sofala (List of colonial governors of Mozambique), and she was married twice, the first marriage to the explorer Cristóvão de Mendonça, and her second marriage was to Simão da Silveira, capitão of Diu (Lista de governadores, capitães e castelões de Diu). D. Maria was left a widow by Simão, and she was a major slave owner, possessing the most slaves in Évora, with her testament recording fifteen slaves.

A legal case was brought before the Spanish Council of the Indies in the 1570s, involving two Chinese men in Seville, one of them a freeman, Esteban Cabrera, and the other a slave, Diego Indio, against Juan de Morales, Diego's owner. Diego called on Esteban to give evidence as a witness on his behalf. Diego recalled that he was taken as a slave by Francisco de Casteñeda from Mexico, to Nicaragua, then to Lima in Peru, then to Panama, and eventually to Spain via Lisbon, while he was still a boy.

Chinese boys were kidnapped from Macau and sold as slaves in Lisbon while they were still children. Brazil imported some of Lisbon's Chinese slaves. Fillippo Sassetti saw some Chinese and Japanese slaves in Lisbon among the large slave community in 1578, although most of the slaves were blacks. Brazil and Portugal were both recipients of Chinese slaves bought by Portuguese. Portugal exported to Brazil some Chinese slaves. Military, religious, and civil service secretarial work and other lenient and light jobs were given to Chinese slaves while hard labor was given to Africans. Only African slaves in 1578 Lisbon outnumbered the large numbers of Japanese and Chinese slaves in the same city. Some of the Chinese slaves were sold in Brazil, a Portuguese colony. Cooking was the main profession of Chinese slaves around 1580 in Lisbon, according to Fillippo Sassetti from Florence and the Portuguese viewed them as diligent, smart, and "loyal".

The Portuguese also valued Oriental slaves more than the black Africans and the Moors for their rarity. Chinese slaves were more expensive than Moors and blacks and showed off the high status of the owner The Portuguese attributed qualities like intelligence and industriousness to Chinese slaves. Traits such as high intelligence were ascribed to Chinese, Indian, and Japanese slaves.

In 1595, a law was passed by Portugal banning the selling and buying of Chinese and Japanese slaves due to hostility from the Chinese and Japanese regarding the trafficking in Japanese and Chinese slaves On 19 February 1624, the King of Portugal forbade the enslavement of Chinese people of either sex.

Others

A Portuguese woman, Dona Ana de Ataíde owned an Indian man named António as a slave in Évora. He served as a cook for her. Ana de Ataíde's Indian slave escaped from her in 1587. A large number of slaves were forcibly brought there since the commercial, artisanal, and service sectors all flourished in a regional capital like Évora.

A fugitive Indian slave from Evora named António went to Badajoz after leaving his master in 1545.

Portuguese domination was accepted by the "docile" Jau slaves. In Évora, Brites Figueira owned a Javanese (Jau) slave named Maria Jau. Antão Azedo took an Indian slave named Heitor to Evora, who along with another slave was from Bengal were among the 34 Indian slaves in total who were owned by Tristão Homem, a nobleman in 1544 in Évora. Manuel Gomes previously owned a slave who escaped in 1558 at age 18 and he was said to be from the "land of Prester John of the Indias" named Diogo.

In Évora, men were owned and used as slaves by female establishments like convents for nuns. Three male slaves and three female slaves were given to the nuns of Montemor by the alcaide-mor's widow. In order to "serve those who serve God" and being told to obey orders "in all things that they ordered them", a boy named Manual along with his slave mother were given to the Nuns of Montemor by father Jorge Fernandes in 1544. A capelão do rei, father João Pinto left an Indian man in Porto, where he was picked up in 1546 by the Évora-based Santa Marta convent's nuns to serve as their slave. However, female slaves did not serve in male establishments, unlike vice versa.

Slavery in Macau and the coast of China

See also: Macanese people

Beginning in the 16th century, the Portuguese tried to establish trading ports and settlements along the coast of China. Early attempts at establishing such bases, such as those in Ningbo and Quanzhou, were however destroyed by the Chinese, following violent raids by the settlers to neighboring ports, which included pillaging and plunder and sometimes enslavement. The resulting complaints made it to the province's governor who commanded the settlement destroyed and the inhabitants wiped out. In 1545, a force of 60,000 Chinese troops descended on the community, and 800 of the 1,200 Portuguese residents were massacred, with 25 vessels and 42 junks destroyed.

Until the mid-17th century, during the early Portuguese mandate of Macau, some 5,000 slaves lived in the territory, in addition to 2,000 Portuguese and an ever-growing number of Chinese, which in 1664 reached 20,000. This number decreased in the following decades to between 1000 and 2000. Most of the slaves were of African origin. Rarely did Chinese women marry Portuguese, initially, mostly Goans, Ceylonese/Sinhalese (from today's Sri Lanka), Indochinese, Malay (from Malacca), and Japanese women were the wives of the Portuguese men in Macau. Slave women of Indian, Indonesian, Malay, and Japanese origin were used as partners by Portuguese men. Japanese girls would be purchased in Japan by Portuguese men. From 1555 onwards Macau received slave women of Timorese origin as well as women of African origin, and from Malacca and India. Macau was permitted by Pombal to receive an influx of Timorese women. Macau received an influx of African slaves, Japanese slaves as well as Christian Korean slaves who were bought by the Portuguese from the Japanese after they were taken prisoner during the Japanese invasions of Korea in the era of Hideyoshi.

On 24 June 1622, the Dutch attacked Macau in the Battle of Macau, expecting to turn the area into a Dutch possession, with an 800-strong invasion force led by under Captain Kornelis Reyerszoon. The relatively small number of defenders repulsed the Dutch attack, which was not repeated. The majority of the defenders were Africans slaves, with only a few dozen Portuguese soldiers and priests in support, and they accounted for most of the victims in the battle. Following the defeat, the Dutch Governor Jan Coen said of the Macao slaves, that "it was they who defeated and drove away our people there". In China during the 19th century, the British consul to China noted that some Portuguese merchants were still buying children between five and eight years of age.

In 1814, the Jiaqing Emperor added a clause to the section of the fundamental laws of China titled "Wizards, Witches, and all Superstitions, prohibited", later modified in 1821 and published in 1826 by the Daoguang Emperor, which sentenced Europeans, namely Portuguese Christians who would not repent their conversion, to be sent to Muslim cities in Xinjiang as slaves to Muslim leaders.

Treatment

African Slaves

Similarities in Living Conditions

Black slaves in Europe, particularly in Portugal, lived similarly to white lower classes, sharing similar dress, food, work, language, and Christian names. They were subject to the same legal, religious, and moral codes as white commoners, and their subjection to a master was not drastically different from that of lower-class whites dependent on masters for necessities.

Naming and Baptism

Slaves’ Christian names were typically chosen by their owners, with ordinary names that did not ridicule them. In Portugal, a 1514 decree by D. Manuel required adult slaves to be baptized within six months of arrival, though those over 10 could decline after clergy admonishment.

Language and Education

Many black slaves learned Portuguese, with varying proficiency. Some, especially those born in Portugal or long-term residents, could read and write standard Portuguese. Notably, Clenardus in Evora educated three slaves in Latin to assist in his school, showcasing exceptional cases of intellectual engagement.

Treatment and Punishment

During transport to Portugal, enslaved people were fastened and chained with manacles, padlocks, and rings around their necks. Portuguese owners could whip, chain, and pour burning hot wax and fat onto the skin of their slaves, and punish their slaves in any way that they wished, as long as the slaves remained alive. The Portuguese also used branding irons to brand their slaves as property.

Black slaves in Portugal were generally treated less harshly than Moorish slaves, with fewer instances of shackling except as punishment. No precise data exist on abuses like facial branding or whipping, but observers noted milder treatment of black slaves. Slaves were assured basic necessities, placing them among the "privileged" working class, though adequacy varied.

Legal and Social Status

In Portugal, black slaves were a small minority and remained inferior retainers subject to their masters, unlike in plantation colonies where slaves were treated as chattels under stricter codes. Slaves in Iberia could legally purchase their freedom with wages from outside work, and some gained manumission through faithful service, increasing the proportion of free blacks.

Cultural Adaptation

Africans in Europe readily adopted European languages, Christian names, and religious practices, with some enthusiastically engaging in Iberian Catholicism through lay brotherhoods or religious vocations. However, slave marriages were rare, and most slave children were born out of wedlock. After Council of Trent, there was a striking increase in the number of marriages between slaves.

Manumission and Purchasing Freedom

In Iberia, African slaves could gain freedom through manumission or self-purchase. Manumission was granted for loyal service, like a Portuguese slave freed in 1447 after five more years of service or Martin in Barcelona promised freedom in 1463 after twelve years. Slaves could also buy freedom with outside earnings, as seen in 1441 when a Catalan slave paid 20% above his purchase price over five years. These options, less common in colonial systems, increased free blacks in Iberia.

Asian Slaves

Slavery as a Temporary Status

In Asia under Portuguese and Spanish colonial rule, slavery was understood as a temporary condition rather than a permanent state. The system was structured with the interests of the enslaved in mind, distinguishing it from more rigid forms of slavery elsewhere. Enslaved individuals were not merely seen as property but as individuals with potential for integration into colonial society. This perspective allowed for a degree of social mobility, where slavery could serve as a transitional phase toward freedom.

Masters were obligated to care for the enslaved, ensuring their basic welfare. Enslaved individuals were granted rights comparable to free persons, such as rest on Sundays and holy days. Religious warnings underscored the moral responsibility of masters, with threats of divine judgment for those who overworked their slaves. This framework positioned slavery as a regulated institution, balancing exploitation with certain protections for the enslaved.

Conversion and Social Assimilation

Conversion to Christianity was a pivotal mechanism for social assimilation, serving as more than a change in religious belief. It acted as a prerequisite for integration into Portuguese colonial society, offering enslaved individuals a pathway to stability as subjects of the Portuguese crown. This process was seen as an opportunity for those in precarious circumstances to rebuild their lives within a structured colonial framework.

The assimilation process involved integration into Christian households, where enslaved individuals received guidance and practical experience. This preparation enabled them to adapt to the cultural and social norms of the colonial society, positioning them for eventual emancipation. The system was designed to facilitate a gradual transition, allowing the enslaved to acquire the skills and social standing necessary to function as free individuals within the Portuguese colonial structure.

Strategic Adaptation and Agency

Rather than being passive victims, enslaved individuals were often strategic in navigating their circumstances. They leveraged the fluid social structures of Portuguese colonies to seek better outcomes, demonstrating resilience and adaptability. This perspective reframes the enslaved as individuals who actively sought to improve their conditions by exploiting opportunities within the colonial system.

Legal avenues provided a critical means for enslaved individuals to challenge their status. For example, in 1599, Gaspar Fernández, a Japanese slave sold by his father, pursued a lawsuit in Nueva España to secure his freedom. He cited royal decrees prohibiting the enslavement of Japanese people by Portuguese or Spanish authorities, arguing that he was neither a war captive nor subject to the "just war" doctrine. Supported by testimony from his former master’s sons, who confirmed his purchase was for a 12-year service contract, Fernández successfully proved his status as an "indio" (indigenous person), equivalent to other free indigenous groups, and was declared free.

Legal Cases and Indigenous Rights

The case of Pedro de la Cruz in 1661 further illustrates the use of legal recourse. A slave from Bengal, he argued that his homeland was not an enemy of Portugal or Spain, rendering his enslavement illegitimate under the "just war" doctrine. The court ruled in his favor, ordering his release. Such cases highlight how enslaved individuals could leverage colonial legal systems to assert their rights.

Indigenous groups like Filipinos, Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans, collectively referred to as "Indios Chinos," could claim freedom based on their status as native peoples of the East. However, debates persisted regarding the enslavement of "Muslim Indians" from regions like Mindanao, Jolo, and Brunei, which were in conflict with Christianized indigenous groups. In 1655, Pedro de Mendoza, enslaved during a war with Jolo Muslims, claimed his rights as an indigenous person, but his case remained unresolved, leaving his fate uncertain.

Evolving Colonial Policy

By 1672, a report to Mariana de Austria by prosecutor Fernando de Aro y Monterroso emphasized that "Indios Chinos" were free subjects of the crown, with increasingly strict prohibitions on their enslavement. These decrees extended protections to individuals from Islamic regions or Portuguese territories, reinforcing the legal framework against their enslavement.

Banning

The Marquis of Pombal (pictured), who forbade the importation of African slaves to Portugal and Portuguese India in 1761

Voices condemning the slave trade were raised early during the Atlantic Slave Trade period. Among them was Gaspar da Cruz, a Dominican friar who dismissed any arguments by the slave traffickers that they had "legally" purchased already-enslaved children, among the earliest condemnations of slavery in Europe during this period.

From an early age during the Atlantic Slave Trade period, the crown attempted to stop the trading of non-African slaves. The enslavement and overseas trading of Chinese slaves, who the Portuguese prized, was specifically addressed in response to Chinese authorities' requests, who, although not against the enslavement of people in Macau and Chinese territories, which was common practice, at different times attempted to stop the transport of slaves outside the territory. In 1595, a Portuguese royal decree banned the selling and buying of ethnically Chinese slaves; it was reiterated by the Portuguese king on 19 February 1624, and, in 1744, by the Qianlong Emperor, who forbade the practice to Chinese subjects, reiterating his order in 1750. However, these laws were not able to stop the trade completely, a practice which lasted until the 1700s. In the American colonies, Portugal halted the use of Chinese, Japanese, Europeans, and Indians to work as slaves for sugar plantations, which was reserved exclusively for African slaves.

In 1761, the Marquis of Pombal banned the importation of African slaves to Portugal and Portuguese India; this however was not intended as an anti-slavery measure, but to ensure the slaves went to Brazil instead. Portugal abolished its involvement in the Atlantic slave trade in 1836, primarily due to Brazil becoming independent and British diplomatic pressure. Finally, in 1869, slavery was abolished for good in the Portuguese Empire.

See also

• Al-Andalus
• Atlantic slave trade
• Barbary slave trade
• Barbary pirates
• Economic history of Portugal
• Slavery in ancient Rome
• Slavery in Angola
• Slavery in Brazil
• Slavery in China
• Slavery in India

Bibliography

• Dias, Maria Suzette Fernandes (2007), Legacies of slavery: comparative perspectives, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, p. 238, ISBN 978-1-84718-111-4