Stellenbosch Slaves Sold at Public Auction

Slave sales (sanctioned or clandestine) happened on the property of the deceased owner, in private homes, inside and in front of shops, aboard ships, or from temporary prisons built on the shore specifically for that purpose. The enslaved (often emaciated and sickly) were paraded naked or partially clothed for inspection on an elevated podium. In summer slave sales happened in the shade of trees where the buyers could comfortably socialise and discuss their bids before entering into transactions. Slave families were broken up and sold off to different buyers who were often located many miles apart, in different areas of the colony. From 1803 onwards slaves were sold at Public Auction after the Dutch Commissioner General, Jacobus Abraham de Mist, set up the Desolate Boedelkamer/ Estates Chamber to manage insolvent Estates and to enforce debt recovery. The Boedelkamer was abolished in 1818 and was replaced by a Sequestrator who was responsible, amongst other things, for the enforcement of all civil sentences, unless stated otherwise by the courts of Justice. In 1828 the justice system was partially brought in line with the British legal system and the office of Sequestrator was dissolved together with the Raad van Justitie. A permanent Chief Justice and two subordinate judges was imported from Britain. From 1834 onwards, with the publication of the second Charter of Justice, the system of Roman Dutch law was reinstated at the Cape Colony and civil matters were relegated to the newly strengthened  Supreme Court with its incoming officers, the court sheriffs.

Slavery was abolished by the British at the Cape on 01 December 1834 but slaves had to serve a four year "apprenticeship".  On 01 December 1838 all forms of forced labour was ended and that version of slavery officially came to an end. Where no exact birthdate is given, the slave's age is an approximation by the slave owner. When I calculated the birth dates I omitted the fractions added to ages by slave owners.

Slave records - South African National Archives

Archive copying by Lara Seaward

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