''Lord Ligonier'' was an 18th-century British

slave ship Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting Slavery, slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea ( ...

built in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

that unloaded enslaved Africans in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

in 1767. The ship was made famous by

Alex Haley Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11, 1921 – February 10, 1992) was an American writer and the author of the 1976 book '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family.'' ABC adapted the book as a television miniseries of the same name and ...

's novel, '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family'', in which it brought his ancestor,

Kunta Kinte Kunta Kinte ( ) is the main character from the 1976 novel '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family'' by American author Alex Haley. Kunta Kinte was based on family oral tradition accounts of one of Haley's ancestors, a Gambian man who was born ...

, from

The Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

to the

colonial United States The colonial history of the United States covers the period of European colonization of North America from the late 15th century until the unifying of the Thirteen British Colonies and creation of the United States in 1776, during the Rev ...

Construction

''Lord Ligonier'' was originally laid down in 1763. The ship was built for hauling tobacco, spice, lumber, and slaves. In June 1765, the ship's owner, Horace Andrews, hired a crew of 40 men and a captain named Davies. The ship had six decks in all, four for carrying "human cargo" and two for hauling spice, lumber, and tobacco. ''Lord Ligonier'' was a sailing ship built to weather Atlantic storms. It could carry 170 enslaved Africans, 40 crew members, and various amounts of other cargo. Although it could carry 170 enslaved people if they were packed in sideways, the ship's capacity was reduced to 140 when they lay on their backs.

1766 voyage and ''Roots''

''Lord Ligonier'' visited

the Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

at least once before the slave trading voyage for which she would much later become famous. In April 1766 she was reported to have returned from there with dispatches from Governor Debatt of Fort James reporting that the French were establishing armed factories on the coast in violation of their treaty undertakings. Captain Thomas Davis sailed from London on 17 July 1766 and arrived in Africa on 13 September. The ''Lord Ligonier'' acquired her slaves at the Gambia and sailed from Africa on 5 July 1767. She arrived at Annapolis on 29 September. She had embarked with 140 slaves, and she arrived with 96. She had left London with 26 crew members, and she arrived with 18. She arrived back in London on 25 January 1768. A surviving advertisement records the arrival of the ship with a cargo of slaves at Annapolis in 1767. The ship was the basis for

's assertion in his novel, '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family'', that his ancestor,

, was brought on that voyage. The

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

based on the book invented a failed slave uprising during the voyage. This is the only voyage of the ''Lord Ligonier'' recorded in the ''Trans Atlantic Slave Trade Database''.

Fate

''Lord Ligonier''s subsequent fate is unknown. There is proof that it sailed on another slave voyage, but nothing is known of it. The ship did not appear in the 1776 volume of ''

Lloyd's Register Lloyd's Register Group Limited, trading as Lloyd's Register (LR), is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research ...

''.

References

{{Roots 1765 ships African-American history in Annapolis, Maryland Gambian-American history London slave ships 18th century in the Gambia

Construction

1766 voyage and ''Roots''

Fate

See also

References