Archibald Dalzel

Archibald Dalzel ( born October 23, 1740 in Kirkilston, Scotland, † 1811 or earlier), actually Dalziel, was a British slave traders, historian, adventurer and Governor of the Gold Coast (now Ghana).

He went to Africa in 1763 as a surgeon in 1770 and returned back to the UK. During this time he served four years as Governor of Whydah ( hwī'də ) on the Slave Coast (now Ouidah, Benin ), the main port of the Kingdom of Dahomey. He observed that the people of Whydah "pay a kind of veneration to a Particular species of large snake, Which is very gentle. "

From the Committee of Merchants, which was then led the supervision of the Gold Coast, he was ( Governor -in- Chief ) appointed in two periods for Governor: March 31, 1792 to December 16, 1798 and April 28, 1800 to September 30 1802.

History of Dahomey

In 1793 he published his History of Dahomey: The history of Dahomy to inland kingdom of Africa; comp. from authentic memoirs; with an introduction and notes, in which he argued that the raids on villages in Dahomey meant for the sake of the slaves, to save them from the even greater evil of human sacrifice.

At the time of publication of the work he was governor at the Cape Coast Castle. His official position offered him opportunities to gain valuable and accurate information. Parts of the story are compiled from the memoirs of Robert Norris, who spent eighteen years in the Africa trade, and from communicating with Lionel Abson, his successor as British governor in Whydah.

Works

• The history of Dahomy to inland Kingdom of Africa. London: Spilsbury, 1793