Royal African Company

Once upon a time, in England, there was a very important company called the Royal African Company. It was like a big business that got special permission from the King to trade with places far away in West Africa. They were supposed to trade for shiny gold, but they ended up trading for something else that became their main business. This company was a big deal back then!

The Royal African Company started its journey in 1660. The King of England, Charles II, and some rich people in London created it. Their first idea was to find gold in a place called the Gambia River. But soon, they started trading for people! They took many people from Africa and sent them across the ocean to places like the Americas. This became the biggest part of their business.

While gold was the first idea, the Royal African Company became famous for trading something else: people. They were the biggest company that sent African people across the sea during a sad time called the Atlantic slave trade. They also traded for other things, like beautiful ivory, which comes from elephant tusks. This ivory often came from a region called the Gold Coast.

After many years, other people in England thought it wasn't fair for just one company to have all the trading power. So, in 1697, the King took away the Royal African Company's special permission. This made it hard for the company to do business. It eventually became much smaller and stopped being a big player. It finally closed its doors in 1752.