Captain Ramon Ferrer

Portrayal of Ramon Ferrer in the 1997 movie Amistad

Author: Allison Khan

The captain of La Amistad during the time of the insurrection was Captain Ramon Ferrer. Not much is really known about his personal life, except for the fact that there is evidence that he was married and he was working with his brother, who was also aboard the ship during the time of the revolt (Zeuske and Garcia 203). Before the La Amistad revolt Ferrer had purchased two slaves for himself, one in which he brought on board as the chef, who was later killed in the insurrection (Zeuske and Garcia 204). Although not much is further known about his personal and who he was as a person and captain, he serves as somewhat of a case study on looking at many Spaniards involved in what later becomes known as “The Underground Slave Trade” (as many Africans were illegally transported during this time). Ferrer was based in Cuba and was in charge of mainly transporting raw materials to different places throughout the Triangular Trade, which included places in the Caribbean both North and South America. Like many of the European captains at the time, he ran a complicated ship. The dynamic of his ship was interesting in that he ran a tight ship in order to get these materials to their destination in a decent amount of time, but it was not as orderly as initially thought. In that, Spain abolished the Slave Trade in 1811 yet during the time of the insurrection (1839) Africans were on board as captives. Exhibiting that, although countries proclaimed to have abolished the Slave Trade, captains like Ramon Ferrer engaged in human trafficking and not just in one instance. Perhaps promoting the even broader idea that captains such as Ferrer were willing to engage in illegal activity not only as a way to make money, but also at the expense of human life and the enslavement of others. All in all, Captain Ramon Ferrer is important to the story of La Amistad, but perhaps even furthers the idea that Europeans looked to expand power in any way possible (which is clearly viewed through their individuals like Ferrer).

Zeuske, Michael and Garcia, Orlando. “La Amistad: Ramon Ferrer in Cuba and the Transatlantic

Dimensions of Slaving and Contraband Trade.” In Slavery and Anti-Slavery in Spain’s Atlantic Empire, edited by Josep Fradera and Christopher Schmidt-Nowara, Volume Nine: 200-228. New York: Berghahn, 2013.