No figure looms larger over the history of the slave trade in Ouidah than Francisco Felix de Souza. Born in Brazil around 1754 to a Portuguese father and an African mother, de Souza arrived in West Africa as a trader and became the most powerful slave broker on the Slave Coast.

His story is inseparable from that of King Ghezo of Dahomey. In 1818, de Souza helped Ghezo seize the throne in a bloody coup against his brother Adandozan. In return, Ghezo granted de Souza a monopoly over the slave trade at Ouidah. The partnership between king and trader turned Ouidah into the most organised slave-trading port in West Africa.

The Chacha title

De Souza became known as "Chacha" — a title that passed to his descendants and is still used by the de Souza family in Benin today. He built a sprawling compound in Ouidah, complete with a slave-holding facility, and operated a network that moved tens of thousands of captives to Brazil, Cuba and the Caribbean.

At its peak, the de Souza operation was a vertically integrated enterprise. Captives were raided by Dahomey's army, held in de Souza's barracoons, negotiated with European ship captains, and loaded onto vessels bound for the Americas. De Souza controlled every stage.

Legacy and memory

Chacha Square (Place Chacha) in central Ouidah still bears his name. It is the starting point of the Route des Esclaves, the four-kilometre memorial path that ends at the Door of No Return. The de Souza family remains one of the most prominent Afro-Brazilian families in Benin.

The story of Francisco de Souza is a story of the Atlantic world in miniature: born in the Americas, trading in Africa, facilitating the forced migration of millions. He was a slave trader, a kingmaker, and the founder of a dynasty that still inhabits the old slave-trading houses of Ouidah.

Pour en savoir plus, consultez Ouidah Origins.