Africa in the 16th–18th centuries

It is convenient to study Africa in two parts, north and south of the Sahara. In North Africa in the 16th century many lands entered the Ottoman Empire: Egypt in 1517, then Libya (1551), Tunis (1574) and Algiers; Morocco stayed independent. In Egypt Mamluk amirs kept local power; in 1798 Napoleon invaded, but the French left the country in 1801. The Portuguese came to West Africa in the 15th century, first taking gold. When plantations appeared in the Americas the demand for labour grew and slaves began to be taken from Africa: first the Portuguese, in the 17th century the Dutch, then the British, French and others joined the trade. About 12 million Africans were carried across the Atlantic by force, and many died on the way; stretches of coast were called the Pepper, Ivory, Gold and Slave Coasts. The slave trade weakened African societies and increased wars and mistrust, while some European and American cities grew rich from it. Racist ideas spread to justify slavery.