Dutch Slave Coast

Dutch Slave Coast
Slavenkust
1660–1760
Flag of Slave Coast
Flag
of Slave Coast
Coat of arms
The Slave Coast around 1716.
The Slave Coast around 1716.
StatusDutch colony
CapitalOffra (1660–1691)
Ouidah (1691–1724)
Jaquim (1726–1734)
Common languagesDutch
Religion
Dutch Reformed
Governor 
History 
• Established
1660
• Disestablished
1760

The Dutch Slave Coast (Dutch: Slavenkust) refers to the trading posts of the Dutch West India Company on the Slave Coast, which lie in contemporary Ghana, Benin, Togo, and Nigeria. The primary purpose of the trading post was to supply slaves for the Dutch colonies in the Americas. Dutch involvement on the Slave Coast started with the establishment of a trading post in Offra in 1660. Later, trade shifted to Ouidah, where the English and French also had a trading post. Political unrest caused the Dutch to abandon their trading post at Ouidah in 1725, now moving to Jaquim, at which place they built Fort Zeelandia. By 1760, the Dutch had abandoned their last trading post in the region.

The Slave Coast was settled from the Dutch Gold Coast, on which the Dutch were based in Elmina. During its existence, the Slave Coast held a close relationship to that colony.


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