Final answer:
The Portuguese established a factory in Elmina, Ghana, which served as a trading post and later became a key point in the trans-Saharan slave trade. It was later controlled by the Dutch and named Fort Geldria.
Step-by-step explanation:
When the Portuguese established a factory in Elmina, it became their main center of activities. This factory, a term used in the context of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, was not the industrial factory we imagine today but rather a trading post with offices and warehouses. Constructed on the coast of what is now Ghana, Elmina started as a trading center for gold but became crucial in the burgeoning trans-Saharan slave trade, symbolizing European penetration into West Africa. The fortress, later known as Fort Elmina or St. George's Castle, provided the Portuguese a stronghold in both the gold and slave trades. By the sixteenth century, the Dutch captured the fortress from the Portuguese and renamed it Fort Geldria. This location then continued its function as a hub in the trade networks, including the tragic human cargo destined for slavery.