Royal African Company

Timeline

1. 1672London, England · LondonKing Charles II issued a royal charter in 1672 formally establishing the Royal African Company, granting it monopoly rights over the West African slave trade as well as the gold and ivory trades. The Duke of York (later James II) became its first governor; the company's capital came mainly from the Stuart royal family and London merchants, with its headquarters in London.
2. 1672–1698Gold Coast of West Africa and Atlantic routes · Gold CoastThe company established trading posts such as Cormantin on the Gold Coast of West Africa, acquiring enslaved people through African middlemen and transporting them to the British Caribbean and North American colonies, while also monopolizing the export of gold and ivory. It is estimated that between 1672 and 1698 it transported over 90,000 enslaved Africans, making it the core institution of the Atlantic triangular trade system.
3. 1698–1752London, England · LondonIn 1698 the British Parliament legislated to allow independent merchants to enter the West African trade upon payment of a fee, effectively revoking the Royal African Company's monopoly. Thereafter the company's income shrank sharply and its finances deteriorated steadily, until it was formally dissolved in 1752, its African stations transferred to the African Company's management.