Slave Trading in the Early Middle Ages - Long-Distance Connections in Northern and East Central Europe

This book reexamines slave trading in the Early Middle Ages from a comparative perspective, situating it at the core of economic and political development in northern and east central Europe.

Fontaine focuses on the 'slaving zones' centered around the British Isles and the Czech lands, tracing the forced migration of enslaved people from the point of capture to their destinations across Europe, the North Atlantic, North Africa, and western Asia. The book explores the changes of the ninth and tenth centuries prompted by increased demand, principally in the Islamic world as well as areas of Viking settlement. The desire to source more slaves led to changes in the practice of warfare to maximize captive taking, the logistics of slave trading and rulers' legal and economic relationships with slavery.

By spanning from the seventh through to the eleventh century, this important study traces the growth, climax, and decline of slave trading in the early Middle Ages and establishes its role as a driver of connectivity.

About the author

Janel M. Fontaine is an archaeologist in the public sector and an Affiliate Researcher at the University of Glasgow.

Product details

• Authors: Janel M Fontaine, Janel M. Fontaine
• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 18.02.2025
• EAN: 9781526160096
• ISBN: 978-1-5261-6009-6
• No. of pages: 296
• Series: Manchester Medieval Studies
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; European History, HISTORY / Europe / Eastern, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Slavery, HISTORY / Europe / Great Britain / Middle Ages (449-1066), Medieval History, British & Irish history, c 500 to c 1000 CE, Slavery & abolition of slavery, European history: medieval period, middle ages, Slavery and abolition of slavery, 11th century, c 1000 to c 1099