The Jesus and the Slave Trade

It's very late on a Wednesday night, and I'm really supposed to be writing a paper right now. I really wanted to share a bit of research with my blog though, so here goes...

"John Hawkins made three trips to West Africa in the 1500s, and stole Africans whom he sold to the Spanish in America. On returning to England after the first trip, his profit was so handsome that Queen Elizabeth I became interested in directly participating in his next venture; and she provided for that purpose a ship named the 'Jesus.' Hawkins left with the Jesus to steal some more Africans, and he returned to England such dividends that Queen Elizabeth made him a knight. Hawkins chose as his coat of arms the representation of an African in chains."

It's from the book 'How Europe Underdevoloped Africa' by Walter Rodney. I'm really only reading it to get a quote, but it's been surprisingly entertaining with little historical nuggets such as the one mentioned above. I might just finish it for fun!