The first slave arrives at the Cape

SlaverySource: https://myfundi.co.za

Updated: 22 Aug 2019

The first slave arrives at the Cape — SlaverySource: https://myfundi.co.za

Less than a year following the arrival of Jan Van Riebeeck, the first enslaved person arrived at the Cape. He was Abram van Batavia. He arrived in Table Bay on the return fleet from Batavia as a stowaway aboard the Malacca. Abram claimed to have run away from slaveholder Cornelis Lichthart of Batavia. Abram worked at the Cape in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) until he was sent back to Batavia.

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2012, February 24). The first slave arrives at the Cape. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074547

South African History Online (2012) 'The first slave arrives at the Cape', South African History Online, 24 February. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074547 (Accessed: 3 November 2026).

South African History Online, The first slave arrives at the Cape [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074547, (accessed 3 November 2026).

"The first slave arrives at the Cape." South African History Online, 24 Feb. 2012, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074547. Accessed 3 Nov. 2026.

South African History Online. "The first slave arrives at the Cape." South African History Online. February 24, 2012. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074547.