Introduction of African black slaves in the kingdom of Guatemala and provinces of San Salvador and Honduras

Abstract

El Salvador has no modern history due to lack of historical memory. Very little has been written and researched about on the introduction of Africans in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. In fact, such topic was addressed by the historians of Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador. In the middle ages and early sixteenth century, the traffic and sale of slaves was acknowledged in Seville. Lisbon and Seville were disputing the slave trade. Plus, slaves were purchased in the steps of the Cathedral of Seville whose market of Cadiz, Seville and Lisbon disputed this human commerce by the Atlantic. My research on the modern age, sixteenth century history of El Salvador has allowed me to find in the historical memory of the Castellanos who introduced the first African blacks in Guatemala San Salvador and Honduras. In the first decades of the sixteenth century, they enslaved the natives of the communities to use them in mining and goldmining in both mines and rivers as well as in agricultural activities. 1546 is the starting point where black slaves were introduced in the zone of the Izalcos and others of Cuscatlán, the Port of Acajutla, by the commerce of the cacao and the merchants of Villa Trinidad and encomenderos of the towns of Izalco. In 1560 the first African blacks were incorporated in order to carry out work on their parcels.

Revista de Museología "Kóot" No.8 2017: 82-175