Territory |
Colonial Power |
Date(s) for the Abolition of Slavery |
Notes |
Anguilla (UK) |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Antigua and Barbuda |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Aruba (Neth.) |
Netherlands |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
Bahamas, The |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Barbados |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Bonaire (Neth.) |
Netherlands, The |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
British Virgin Islands (UK) |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Cayman Islands (UK) |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Cuba |
Spain |
Oct 7, 1886 |
Slavery abolished by Spanish royal decree. Cuba was the last territory in the Caribbean to abolish slavery. |
Curaçao (Neth.) |
Netherlands, The |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
Dominica |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Dominican Republic |
Spain |
Feb 9, 1822 |
Slavery finally abolished with the annexation of the Dominican Republic (Spanish Haiti) to French Haiti on February 9, 1822 by Haitian President Jean-Pierre Boyer. |
Grenada |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Guadeloupe (Fr.) |
France |
May 28, 1848 |
Abolition of slavery in the French colonies is credited to the 1848 Revolution and the Abolition Laws of the Second Republic. |
Haiti |
France |
Jul 7, 1801;
Jan 1, 1804 |
Slavery outlawed by the leader of the Haitian Revolution Toussaint L’Ouverture on July 7, 1801, however, former slaves were forced to work by revolutionary soldiers to prop up the plantation economy. Slaves fully freed on January 1, 1804, after Haiti defeated the French and declared independence. |
Jamaica |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Martinique (Fr.) |
France |
May 28, 1848 |
Abolition of slavery in the French colonies is credited to the 1848 Revolution and the Abolition Laws of the Second Republic. |
Montserrat (UK) |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Puerto Rico (US) |
Spain |
Mar 22, 1873 |
Slavery abolished by the Spanish Nation Assembly. |
Saba (Neth.) |
Netherlands |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
Saint Barthelemy |
France |
May 28, 1848 |
Abolition of slavery in the French colonies is credited to the 1848 Revolution and the Abolition Laws of the Second Republic. |
Saint Kitts and Nevis |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Saint Lucia |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Saint Martin (Fr.) |
France |
May 28, 1848 |
Abolition of slavery in the French colonies is credited to the 1848 Revolution and the Abolition Laws of the Second Republic. |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Sint Eustatius (Neth.) |
Netherlands, The |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
Sint Maarten (Neth.) |
Netherlands, The |
Jul 1, 1863;
Jul 1, 1873 |
Former slaves in the Dutch colonies were forced to serve an unpaid apprenticeship of an additional ten years, with full emancipation occurring on July 1, 1873. |
Trinidad and Tobago |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
Turks and Caicos Islands (UK) |
Great Britain |
Aug 1, 1834;
Aug 1, 1838 |
Former slaves were required to serve their masters for an additional period of six years, however, this was ended two years prematurely with the granting full emancipation on August 1, 1838. |
US Virgin Islands (US) |
Denmark |
Jul 3, 1848 |
Slaves were freed on July 3, 1848, after a non-violent revolt in which enslaved Africans threatened to burn down the town of Frederiksted. Denmark had originally intended to maintain slavery until 1859. The US Virgin Islands were a colony of Denmark until 1917, when the United States purchased the islands for $25 million. |