Bristol became an important port as early as the Middle
Ages. But its history has a dark period. At the end of the 17th century,
it began to draw part of its ...(1)... from a new source, that
in our own times is ...(2)... : the transatlantic trade in slaves.
This had been begun by the Portugese in the 15th century, but was then
...(3)... by the British as they increased the number of their
colonies in the West Indies and North America.
It became a triangle of voyages. First of all, ships would leave Britain
with goods to sell - everything from ...(4)... to guns. They would
sail to West Africa, where those goods would be exchanged or sold to African
traders in return for slaves. The slaves would then be shipped across
the Atlantic to the British colonies, to be sold as ...(5)... on
the plantations. The final side of the triangle was when the ships sailed
back to Bristol with the produce of those plantations, such as sugar,
tobacco, cocoa, coffee and cotton. Despite the fact that these voyages
were very profitable, opposition to slave trading grew in Britain all
through the 18th century, and the trade was ...(6)... in British
territories and British ships in 1807.
Links for more information The Hotwell Press - Bristol and
the slave trade
1. Choose a word
1. wills
1. wells
1. wealth
2. Choose a word
2. despised
2. espied
2. spiced
3. Choose a word
3. adopted
3. adapted
3: a top tip
4. Choose a word
4. test files
4. test tiles
4. textiles
5. Choose a word
5. walkers
5. workers
5. whalers
6. Choose a word
6. polished
6. a bowl licked
6. abolished
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