Slavery and Slave Trade

Mission societies and churches in general were a major force behind the British abolition of slavery. The founding of Sierra Leone was a missionary experiment in a free African society. Mission activity in West Africa gathered momentum from the early nineteenth century in an endeavor to repair the evil and the harm caused by centuries of European-led slave trade. Missionaries redeemed slaves and pawns in West Africa by paying compensation to their owners. Young ex-slaves were enrolled in mission schools, and adults equipped with economic skills. Missionaries provided homes for ex-slaves. The role of the Basel Mission Society in the Gold Coast (Ghana) is especially important in this respect, and Peter Haenger has provided an insightful study into the social dynamics of dependency in the Gold Coast and the role of the Basel Mission in ending slavery and debt bondage well before the formal onset of British colonialism in 1874 [Peter Haenger, Slave and Slave Holders on the Gold Coast (2000)]. Asante resisted the abolition of slavery until colonial annexation in 1896. Basel missionary, F. A. Ramseyer, followed the invading British force to Asante and set up the beginnings of the Basel mission church in Kumase. Mr. and Mrs. Ramseyer took in freed slaves and provided a home for them, clothed them, and guided them on the road to conversion. Today the major Presbyterian Church in Adum, Kumase, is popularly referred to as "Ramseyer."