Sources on slavery in the Danish West Indies

Since slavery was integral to life in the Danish West Indies until its abolition in 1848, references to enslaved people and slavery are present in nearly all archival materials from that era. This makes it challenging to select the most important groups of sources, as it depends on the specific aspect of slavery that interests you.

The source groups in this guide have been selected to showcase the wide range of topics related to slavery. However, please note that there are many other types of sources that contain information and perspectives on slavery in the Danish West Indies. In the registry, you can get an overview of all digitized records from local Danish authorities in the Danish West Indies.

Use the glossary with explanations of the most important archival terms and concepts: Danish-English translations of archival terms.

The records consist of tables maintained during slave auctions. They include information such as the names of buyers, the number of enslaved people they purchased, the gender, age (adults or children), physical condition (healthy or ill), and price of the enslaved individuals. These records provide insight into the slave trade that took place when the ships of the West India and Guinea Company arrived from Africa to St. Thomas.

The records are organised chronologically but are not preserved for every year within the period 1724-1739.

It cannot be assumed that the registered enslaved people represent all those who arrived on the islands during the given years. Although the West India and Guinea Company had a monopoly on the import of enslaved people, some were also imported illegally, and these individuals are not recorded here. The records are written in Danish (Gothic script).

These reports can provide insight into the daily work of the field slaves and craft slaves owned by the West India and Guinea Company. The reports are in the form of tables detailing the work performed by field slaves day by day on the company’s plantations on St. Thomas and St. Croix, and by craft slaves on the company’s buildings on St. Thomas.

They include information on how many slaves performed which tasks and for how long, the names of the slaves, and absences due to illness or escape (maronage). The work of the craft slaves is particularly well documented. For example, two carpenter slaves spent Thursday, 9 March 1752, planing boards for the floor of the armoury in Fort Christian, Charlotte Amalie.

The reports are divided into two categories: field slaves and craft slaves. Each report is organised chronologically and written in Danish (Gothic script).

The plantation reports originate from plantations that were indebted to the Danish state. Their purpose was to provide the state with continuous updates on the management of these plantations. The high level of debt among plantations was due to the Danish state taking over a series of large loans that plantation owners had taken out in the Netherlands in 1786.

The plantation reports can provide insight into the living conditions of slaves on various plantations, particularly on St. Croix, during the period from 1787 to 1847. There are three types of reports, each offering different types of information.

Weekly Reports

These weekly submissions detail the slave workforce, the work performed, which slaves were ill and with what ailments, which slaves were punished and for what reasons, and the stock of provisions on each plantation.

Police Reports

These monthly reports document which slaves were punished, the reasons for the punishment, and the type of punishment administered.

Hospital Reports

These monthly reports provide information on which slaves were ill, when, for how long, and what they suffered from.

The collection of plantation reports is organised geographically by island. However, the vast majority of the reports are from St. Croix. Within each island, the reports are organised alphabetically by the plantation name and then chronologically.

Each report typically consists of a pre-printed form filled out in Danish (Gothic script), though some forms are entirely handwritten. The series of forms for each plantation does not cover the entire period from 1787 to 1847 but rather shorter periods, with the best coverage being in the 1830s and 1840s.

The slave statistics from 1804 can help you gain an overview of the composition of the slave population in that year. The statistics provide information on gender, age, marital status, place of birth, occupation, religion, as well as the number of slaves living on each plantation, the number of slave houses, and the amount of land allocated for cultivating food for the slaves. The statistics cover only the year 1804 and the plantations on the three islands, with urban areas not included.

Following a 10-year transitional period leading up to the abolition of the Danish transatlantic slave trade (1793-1803), many plantation owners believed it was still not possible to maintain the number of slaves without importing new ones. As a result, a survey was conducted in 1804 to determine whether there was a need to extend the transitional period.

The statistics are based on data from this survey. The outcome of the survey was that the period was not extended.

The statistics consist of forms that are stored together with other documents from the so-called “Commission for the Better Regulation of the Negro Trade”. The collection of forms is organised geographically by island and then by quarter. Similarly, each individual form is organised geographically by quarter, with each plantation listed by cadastral number. There are also special forms that summarise all the data from each island and for the colony as a whole.

The forms are written in Danish (Gothic script).

Certificates of freedom can help you determine whether a slave gained their freedom during their lifetime, and when this occurred.

The freedom certificate is either a pre-printed page with the name and date of issuance filled in, or it is entirely handwritten. The certificate always includes the name of the freed person and usually also the name of the former owner. Additionally, there may be details such as the value of the freed person and who paid for their freedom if it was not the owner.

Freedom certificates were issued by the government and had to be carried by the freed person at all times as proof of their free status. Some of the certificates are only available as copies, as the original was issued to the freed person. The collection of freedom certificates is not complete, and you cannot rely on finding the names of all freed slaves.

The collection of certificates of freedom is organized geographically by island and then chronologically. The certificates of freedom are often not in an organized order in the individual box, but in some cases they are ordered alphabetically or chronologically. The certificates of freedom are written in Danish (Gothic) and English (Latin).

The justice protocol from the Court-Martial in Frederik’s Fort in 1848 offers insight into the critical uprising that led to the abolition of slavery and the subsequent actions taken by the Danish colonial authorities to restore law and order.

It contains details about interrogations, the progression of cases, and the judgments issued.

The protocol originates from the Court-Martial established after the slave rebellion in 1848, which resulted in the abolition of slavery in Danish West Indies. The court was tasked with adjudicating cases involving individuals who, in connection with the rebellion, had breached the law and caused damage to persons and property.

The majority of those judged were former slaves.

The protocol is organised chronologically by the date of interrogations, the progression of cases in court, and concludes with the sentencing. It does not include an index, but names are underlined, making them easier to locate by skimming through the text.

The protocol is written in Danish (Gothic script).