In what year did the international slave trade officially end in the United States?

The international slave trade officially ended in the United States in 1808. This date is significant because it marks the year when the United States, following a provision in its Constitution, prohibited the importation of enslaved people from other countries. Specifically, the Constitution allowed Congress to ban the slave trade after 20 years, which led to the federal law that made it illegal to import slaves from abroad.

This was a critical step in the history of slavery in America, as it indicated a shift in the legal status and management of the slave trade, although it did not end slavery itself within the country. Despite the law, illegal smuggling of enslaved people continued for many years afterward, highlighting the complex and often contradictory nature of slavery and its legal framework during that period.