History and Landmarks
See also: Portuguese GuineaThe town of Cacheu is situated in territory of the Papel people.
Cacheu was one of the earliest European colonial settlements in sub-saharan Africa, due to its strategic location on the Cacheu river. Cacheu developed a European/Afro-European population from the late fifteenth century through informal settlement of Cape Verdian and Portugues traders, adventurers and outcasts (lancados). The authorities in mainland Portugal also sent to Cacheu degredados - people condemned to exile for a variety of offences.
For most of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Cacheu was the official slave trading point for the Portuguese in the Upper Guinea region - the point at which duties on all slaves exported had to be paid.
Notable buildings in Cacheu include the Portuguese-built 16th century fort, dating from the period when Cacheu was a centre for the slave trade.
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