Embedded Files
What Happened to the Raw Materials Produced?
What Happened to the Raw Materials Produced?
From Plantation to Profit: The Journey of Raw Materials
According to Went Wrigley (2017), after enslaved people harvested crops like cotton, sugar, tobacco, and rice, the raw materials were sent across the ocean to Europe and the northern U.S., where they were turned into products and sold for profit.
Examples of Where the Goods Went (Wrigley, 2017):
Cotton: Sent to textile factories in Britain, spun into fabric and clothes.
Sugar: Sent to Europe, used in tea and desserts, or distilled into rum.
Tobacco: Became a popular luxury product across Europe.
Rice: Sold to European markets or to other colonies for food.
Slaves were not paid for their labour, but their work helped build the wealth of:
European colonial powers (like Britain, Portugal, France)
Plantation owners in the Americas
Factory owners in Europe
Building Empires on Slave Labour (Wrigley, 2017)
Without the work of enslaved Africans, these economies would not have grown so quickly. The profits from plantations funded:
Factories and industrial growth in Britain
Ships, banks, and trading companies
Entire cities and nations
Meanwhile, the enslaved people who produced the goods remained in poverty and bondage.
Activity 6
Activity 6
Instructions to Learners:
Imagine you are following the journey of a piece of cotton from the hands of an enslaved person on a plantation in the American South to a textile factory in Britain.
Write a paragraph explaining how this cotton helped build wealth in other parts of the world.
In your paragraph, describe:
The role of slaves in producing the cotton
Where the cotton went and what it was used for
Who made money from this process
Your paragraph must be at least 8–10 full sentences.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse