British Companies Exploited Slavery in Brazil Decades After Legal Abolition
British companies and citizens continued to profit from slavery in Brazil for over half a century after the UK's Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, according to new historical research. A notorious case involves the St John d'El Rey mining company, which in 1845 'rented' 385 enslaved people in Brazil, exploiting a loophole in the 1843 Slave Trade Act that permitted such practices overseas for up to 14 years.
Legal Loopholes and Overlooked Complicity
Historian Joseph Mulhern, author of British Entanglement with Brazilian Slavery, argues that these connections are often overlooked in British education, where the narrative tends toward self-congratulation. Despite the UK's global campaign against slavery, British entities remained deeply involved. The rented enslaved people at St John d'El Rey were supposed to be freed after their term, but this did not occur; only 123 survivors were liberated in 1879 after abolitionist exposure, with most having died in captivity.
Mulhern highlights that British officials in Brazil and London were aware of these ties but often turned a blind eye, citing lack of evidence. This complicity extended beyond mining to include merchants who supplied goods and credit, enabling illegal slave trafficking to flourish after Brazil's 1831 ban, which was widely ignored and dubbed a law 'for the English to see.'
Financial Profits and Human Costs
Earlier research from Durham University revealed that British banks treated enslaved people as collateral for loans, forcing auctions when debts defaulted. In one 1878 sale in Rio de Janeiro, a mother named Caetana was separated from her three-year-old son, Pio, illustrating the brutal human impact. A rare 1848-49 census commissioned by Britain's Foreign Office recorded over 3,445 enslaved people held by British interests in Brazil, with mining companies like St John d'El Rey accounting for more than half.
The scandal, exposed by Brazilian abolitionist Joaquim Nabuco, helped trigger Brazil's eventual abolition of slavery in 1888, making it the last country in the Americas to do so. Mulhern debunks the myth of 'benevolent masters,' noting that even poor British immigrants owned enslaved people, with evidence of violence and abuse dispelling any notions of kindness.
Broader Implications and Historical Legacy
This research underscores how British involvement in Brazilian slavery persisted through legal technicalities and economic entanglements, challenging simplistic narratives of moral superiority. It calls for a reevaluation of the UK's role in global slavery, emphasizing that profit often outweighed ethical commitments long after abolition laws were passed.
