After Ceuta, Portuguese ships hugged Africa’s coast like shadows.

They arrived smiling.

They left building forts.

Elmina Castle rose in present-day Ghana, strong, cold, and permanent. At first, trade flowed: gold for cloth, pepper for beads. Africans welcomed visitors cautiously.

But greed has no patience.

Soon, human beings became merchandise.

The transatlantic slave trade swallowed millions. Strong men, women, and children were chained, branded, and shipped across the ocean. Families screamed names that would never be answered again.

Some African leaders resisted fiercely.

Others were deceived.

Some were forced into cooperation to survive.

Europe grew rich.

Africa grew empty.

Still, Europeans dared not enter the interior. African kingdoms remained powerful, organized, and dangerous.

For now.