船員たちの語りから見るギニア航海1553-1565

In the mid-16th century, the seamen and seafaring traders left London to commerce with equatorial West Africa. It was the dawn of the deep-sea English merchant marine. Guinea trade, especially gold in Mina (Gold Coast) attracted many seamen and merchants in England. But, it should be noted that early Guinea trade entailed great sacrifice; on the occasions of 9 voyages in 1553-1565, of the estimated 1000 to 1500 seafarers who embarked, approximately 300 to 500 died. So as a result, many seamen made their wills on shipboard, when they were on the brink of death.
In this article, I regard their wills as personal narrative of common seamen and reconstruct the voyages and Guinea trade, the shipboard community and economy on the basis of them. They were no mere ciphers of the London promoters nor indistinguishable proletariat. They had their own personality, shipboard life-styles and culture.