Dark Bullion cover art

Dark Bullion

Dark Bullion

Written by: Calvin Walker
Listen for free

About this listen

The Dark Bullion audio series is a historical project that explores the Atlantic slave trade, focusing on lesser-known themes and contradictions, and its lasting impact on the systems and institutions we live with today. It begins in mid-17th century West Africa and utilizes AI-generated voices.

The content is drawn from historical records, traveler accounts, and European enslavers’ reports, aiming for historical accuracy while acknowledging conflicting interpretations among historians. The project seeks to present the complexity and contradictions of the past with care, without simplification.

Download the study guide from the Dark Bullion website.

https://calvinwalker.cc/dark-bullion/

Calvin Walker 2026 Science Social Sciences World
Episodes
  • Women of West Africa

    Women of West Africa
    Mar 2 2026

    This episode examines the complex and multifaceted roles of women during the Atlantic slave trade period in West Africa. It profiles the Mino (Agojié), Dahomey’s all- female military regiment, and explores women’s positions as traders, political advisors, and warriors. It highlights three remarkable figures: Queen Agontimé, who rose from captivity to become a Candomblé priestess in Brazil; Queen Nzinga Mbande of Ndongo and Matamba, a diplomatic and military leader who resisted Portuguese colonization; and Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita, a religious visionary whose Antonianism movement challenged both church authority and the slave trade.

    The episode also details the unique practice of woman-to-woman marriage in Dahomey, emphasizing how women navigated survival, power, and legacy in a society where they could be simultaneously victims, traders, and architects of their own destinies.
    Show More Show Less
    22 mins
No reviews yet