Zanzibar’s Indian Merchants and the End of Slavery

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the pivotal role of Indian merchants in Zanzibar's slave trade and its eventual abolition. They focus on Jairam Sewji, the powerful Bhatia merchant who controlled the customs farm, and his successor Tharia Topan. The conversation covers how Indian financiers enabled the clove plantation economy, the 1873 treaty that formally ended the slave trade, and the complex legacy of figures like Sewji and Topan who were both beneficiaries of slavery and agents of change. The episode also touches on the 1890 abolition of slavery itself and the transition to wage labor on the clove shambas. Specific terms like 'Bhatia', 'Khoja', 'customs farm', 'shamba', and 'watoro' are woven into the discussion, offering listeners a nuanced look at the economic and moral contradictions of Zanzibar's 19th-century society. #Zanzibar #IndianMerchants #SlaveTrade #JairamSewji #ThariaTopan #Bhatia #Khoja #ClovePlantations #1873Treaty #Abolition #CustomsFarm #StoneTown #SwahiliCoast #Omani #BritishConsul #JohnKirk #Shamba #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo