--- title: "Empire and Its Costs" description: "European overseas empires gained wealth from seized land, taxes, raw materials and coerced labour. Enslaved and colonised people resisted. Laws banning the trade in enslaved people and laws ending sla" canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/empire-and-its-costs-mt_i3Yw06vg5I source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/empire-and-its-costs-mt_i3Yw06vg5I.md retrieved: 2026-11-12 --- > **Agent view.** This is the Markdown twin of the page, for tools and assistants. > When to use this site, and the call that answers each job: https://lightmysky.com/agent-instructions.md > API description (OpenAPI 3.1): https://lightmysky.com/openapi.json · Authentication: https://lightmysky.com/auth.md > Pricing: https://lightmysky.com/pricing.md · Catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms.txt · Full catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms-full.txt > Every machine-readable file on this domain: https://lightmysky.com/.well-known/ai-catalog.json > Ask for Markdown with `Accept: text/markdown`, a `.md` address, or `?mode=agent`. # Empire and Its Costs European overseas empires gained wealth from seized land, taxes, raw materials and coerced labour. Enslaved and colonised people resisted. Laws banning the trade in enslaved people and laws ending slavery were separate changes. Subject: History · Area: The Modern World · Ages 14 to 16 Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/empire-and-its-costs-mt_i3Yw06vg5I ## Ready when they can - Explain what the Atlantic slave trade was and describe the three legs it is usually drawn as - Name two things empires took from the places they ruled, such as raw materials, land, taxes, or forced labour - Name one form of resistance, from a revolt to an abolition campaign, and say what it demanded - Say why banning the trade in enslaved people did not end slavery everywhere at once ## Lesson: Who paid for empire An empire is a state that rules other peoples and territories. Here we focus on European overseas empires. The Atlantic slave trade forced Africans across the ocean to the Americas, mainly from the 1500s to the 1800s. About 12.5 million people were forced aboard ships in Africa. Many died during the crossing, so the number who arrived was lower. The triangular trade is a model of three linked routes. Manufactured goods, such as cloth and guns, travelled from Europe to Africa. Enslaved Africans were taken from Africa to the Americas on the Middle Passage. Plantation crops, such as sugar and tobacco, travelled to Europe. The wider Atlantic network included other routes; ships did not all complete this triangle. *(drawing: The shipments, in order: manufactured goods; enslaved people on the Middle Passage; plantation crops. Not every ship completed all three legs.)* Colonial rulers and businesses could gain wealth by seizing land, collecting taxes and exporting raw materials. Enslaved workers could not freely refuse work and were usually unpaid. Others faced forced labour or low pay; low pay alone did not make work slavery. Profits could go to owners and merchants in Europe or the colonies. Communities could lose land, and workers faced violence and death. To judge benefits and costs, ask who gained and who lost. Enslaved people resisted by escaping, damaging equipment and rising against ship crews or plantation owners. They sought freedom. Abolition campaigns demanded an end to the trade or to slavery itself. Enslaved and formerly enslaved campaigners joined other opponents of slavery in demanding these changes. Revolts and campaigns helped put pressure on governments. Laws changed at different times and places. A trade ban restricted trading in enslaved people. It did not automatically free people already enslaved, because slavery could remain legal. Some traders also broke the bans. Ending slavery required a change in legal status: people could no longer lawfully be held as property. Even after slavery ended in law, other forms of forced labour continued. **Recap.** Enslaved and colonised people bore costs while others profited. Resistance helped change laws, but banning the trade did not automatically end slavery. *Lesson, questions and flashcards written for this dataset.* ## Practice 8 questions on this page, each with its working shown. ## Optional connections - [Geography of World Trade](https://lightmysky.com/learn/geography/geography-of-world-trade-mt_Vpbi5Z4ypw) ## Opens up - [The Enlightenment and the Age of Revolutions](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-enlightenment-and-the-age-of-revolutions-mt_6lJ0wjVsig) - [Resisting Colonial Rule](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/resisting-colonial-rule-mt_7Y5kKzxsBv) - [The First World War](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-first-world-war-mt_9-0GTkTf6b) - [The Non-Aligned World](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-non-aligned-world-mt_aHyHeLXH20) - [Industrialising Outside Europe: Japan and Egypt](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/industrialising-outside-europe-japan-and-egypt-mt_DFhpNwT4Rq) - [Globalisation and Who It Left Out](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/globalisation-and-who-it-left-out-mt_O008yD5Jwa) - [The Columbian Exchange](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-columbian-exchange-mt_R6zh3S5dha) - [Decolonisation and New Nations](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/decolonisation-and-new-nations-mt_VWuBm6iRmI)