Introduction
The fight for freedom of African slaves in the United States was as old as slavery in the colonial United States. Africans in the new lands were in captivity for over two and half centuries, a period that rendered many dead, injured, maimed, tortured, imprisoned and inhumanly treated in their struggle for liberty and equality. In the face of their white masters, Africans were nothing less than a commodity to be sold on the market, mules to be used in land cultivation and animals to be abused at the digression of their masters. From the early stages of slavery in the United States, numerous rebellions were staged by slaves in quest of their freedom. The most famous include the rebellions led by Gabriel, Deslondes, and Turner.
The Gabriel’s rebellion
The Gabriel’s rebellion also referred to as the Gabriel conspiracy of 1800 was staged in Richmond, Virginia under the confines of revolutionary thoughts as Gabriel envisioned freedom and equal rights for himself and his fellow African slaves. Born in slavery, his skills and demeanour as well as his ability to read and write provided him with a leadership capacity. Imbibed by the political environment of the era, Gabriel sort to rally the slaves under the reasoning of the Jeffersonian political ideology that in his perspective represented the interests of the slaves and disenfranchised in the region. He developed an open plan under which he hoped to enlist over a thousand slaves under a banner of ‘death or liberty’. The process was to march to Richmond and hold the governor in charge of James Monroe after taking the armoury 1 . He envisioned this as the way through which the merchant class would yield to their demands of freedom and equal rights for all. Nonetheless, on August 30 as the day of the uprising was staged, the plan was derailed by a violent thunderstorm that made it impossible to travel. Gabriel and his conspirators were arrested and executed by the state.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
German coast uprising
Led by Charles Deslondes, the German coast uprising of 1811 in New Orleans preceded to be one of the most sophisticated rebellions of the time. Staged from the Andry plantation on January 8, Deslondes accompanied by 25 slaves attacked the plantation owner and killed his son by letting him escape. The plantation was attacked by design as it housed armoury for the local militia and therefore suitable for the slaves to begin their revolt. Armed with guns and ammunition from the farm, they matched with the aim to capture New Orleans attacking, pillaging and killing all whites and the plantation of their path. The progression of their match was joined by other slaves to the tune of over 125 slaves while some reports indicate up to 300. Assigned to eliminate the threat of slave’s uprising, a combined force of 30 army soldiers and militia faced off for two days until Deslondes ran out of ammunition 20 miles from New Orleans 2 . In the wake of the rebellion, twenty were slaves were dead, fifty were captured and the rest fled to the swamps. By the end of the month, fifty more were captured and executed and their heads severed and hung along the road to New Orleans.
Nat Turner rebellion
The Nat Turner rebellion of 1831 was among the most brutal uprising of the time led by Nat Turner in Southampton County Virginia. Inspired by the actions of Gabriel who was executed on the week of his birth, turner with about seventy slaves and a few free blacks armed themselves and set off on a slaughter of white people in their neighbourhood. Starting with his master and his wife and children, the rebels attacked fifteen homes killing over fifty-five whites with the intention of marching to Jerusalem Virginia. When other slaves turned against the rebellion on the belief that it would undoubtedly fail, the rebels were captured and turner escaped eluding authorities for more than a month 3 . While the aim was to procure freedom by force, Turner was met by the most brutal execution on the day of his trial, he was skinned by enraged whites and his body parts were distributed as souvenirs.
Conclusion
While the fight for freedom has never been easy, these three individuals denoted the continued struggle of Africans faced by an overwhelming white discrimination. Their actions although brutal in nature, palled by comparison of the torture and brutality of the white against the blacks. The subsequent outcomes were the strict, suppressive and discriminatory regulations and laws to affirm slavery. Nonetheless, each rebellion fuelled the commitment of blacks to fight for their freedom.
Bibliography
Egerton, Douglas R. "Gabriel's Conspiracy and the Election of 1800." The Journal of Southern History 56, no. 2 (1990): 191-214.
Paquette, Robert L. "A Horde of Brigands? The Great Louisiana Slave Revolt of 1811 Reconsidered." Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques 35, no. 1 (2009): 72-96.
Turner, VVho VVas Nat. "Nat Turner’s Rebellion (1831)." Revolts, Protests, Demonstrations, and Rebellions in American History: An Encyclopedia 1 (2011): 269.
1 Egerton, Douglas R. "Gabriel's Conspiracy and the Election of 1800." The Journal of Southern History 56, no. 2 (1990): 191-214.
2 Paquette, Robert L. "“A Horde of Brigands?” The Great Louisiana Slave Revolt of 1811 Reconsidered." Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques 35, no. 1 (2009): 72-96.
3 Turner, VVho VVas Nat. "Nat Turner’s Rebellion (1831)." Revolts, Protests, Demonstrations, and Rebellions in American History: An Encyclopedia 1 (2011): 269.
