Introduction
Prince Abdul Rahman Ibrahima (1762-1829) was from Futa Jallon in today’s Republic of Guinea in Africa. He was captured during war, brought to America, and sold to Thomas Foster, who enslaved him for forty years near Natchez. Through complex negotiations, he and his wife Isabella were freed in 1828 and departed from this site. He never reached his homeland, dying in 1829 of disease in Liberia, where he had landed. Ibrahima became known as the “Prince Among Slaves.” Descendants remain in the U.S. and Liberia.
The Student Will
- Analyze the article’s terminology through discussion and individual research.
- Synthesize information to answer questions from the text in the article.
- Explore events and information around the life and travels of Abdul Rahman Ibrahima.
- Create a map of Abdul Rahman Ibrahima's journey
Curricular Connections
Fourth Grade 4.MS.5
Describe the Antebellum society of Mississippi. 1. Outline the rise of Mississippi's cotton culture.
2. Link cotton culture to the rise of slavery. 3. Discuss the leaders of the abolition movement and the importance of the end of slavery in the South.
American History (7th or 8th Grade) 8.7
Evaluate the impact of social and political reforms on the development of American society. 2. Examine the actions of enslaved people to resist the institution of slavery (e.g., Spirituals, Harriet Tubman, Nat Turner rebellion, etc.). 3. Compare and contrast the philosophies of natural rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence and the Declaration of Sentiments (e.g., “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights”).
Mississippi Studies MS.5
Analyze the characteristics of antebellum Mississippi, emphasizing the plantation system and the evolution of slavery. 1. Trace the evolution of slavery in Mississippi, including the significance of the Forks of the Road slave market in Natchez. 2. Analyze the relationship between cotton and the evolution of the plantation economy in antebellum Mississippi. 3. Examine the culture and social structure that developed in Mississippi during the antebellum period.
Vocabulary
Chattel Slavery: slavery in which a person is owned as property
Mosque: a building used for public worship by Muslims
Colonel: a senior officer in the military hierarchy, typically commanding a large unit
Forks of the Road: site in Natchez of the second-largest domestic slave market in the Deep South
Fort Rosalie: created as a French colonial bulkhead that led to the oldest permanent settlement on the lower Mississippi River - Natchez
Qur'an: the central religious text of Islam
Moor: one of the Arab and Berber conquerors of Spain
American Colonization Society: an organization founded in 1817 to facilitate the migration of free African Americans to Africa
Comprehension Questions
1. What book is considered the definitive work on Ibrahima?
2. How old was Ibrahima when he joined his father's army?
3. Where had he been before joining his father's army?
4. Why was it ironic that Ibrahima was sold into slavery?
5. Why do you think Ibrahima told his enslaver he was a prince? Why do you think he didn't believe Ibrahima?
6. How did Ibrahima know Dr. Cox?
7. Why would Andrew Marchalk want to help Ibrahima?
8. What did Ibrahima do to gain freedom for his children?
Answers
1. Prince Among Slaves: The True Story of an African Prince Sold into Slavery in the American South by Terry Alford
2. He was 26.
3. He had been in the mosques of Timbuktu and Djenne in Mali.
4. His captivity was ironic because his army was fighting to continue the slave trade with Europe, while the opposing side was trying to end it. When he lost, he was sold.
5. Student answers will vary and should show an understanding of the question and material.
6. Ibrahima helped to care for Cox when he was lost and left for dead in Africa.
7. Student answers will vary and should show an understanding of the question and material.
8. He traveled to Washington, D.C., and Connecticut on a fundraising campaign to raise money to purchase their freedom.
Activity
Tracing the Journey
- Students will read the article A Prince Enslaved in Southwest Mississippi and answer the comprehension questions.
- Students will make a list of the places Ibrahima traveled after he was captured in Africa.
- Students will create a digital map of Ibrahima's travels from Africa to America and back.
Map Directions:
1. Search Google for My Maps
2. Click the red box - create a new map
3. In the white box on the top left, give your map a name
4. Click the search bar and type the first location. Once it pulls up, click Add to map
*Continue until you've added all the locations from your list. - An optional printable, paper map for this activity can be found here: https://www.waterproofpaper.com/printable-maps/world.shtml