The number of enslaved Africans transported on English ships dramatically increases to an average of 20,000 per year. By the end of the 17th century, England leads the world in the trafficking of African people.

Merchant vessels carry New England rum to slaveholders, then bring enslaved Africans on the Middle Passage to the West Indies, and finally, transport West Indian sugar and molasses to New England for the rum distilleries. This is called the "Golden Triangle."