Nat Turner Rebellion Research Paper

Resistance to slavery began almost as soon as slavery itself did. This should not be surprising when considering that slaves were treated more as property than as human beings. In the United States, resistance to slavery took up multiple forms. These included large-scale rebellions and smaller, quieter acts of resistance. The “day to day resistance,” to slavery was the most common form of resistance. This type of resistance included playing dumb, not following orders, breaking tools, and faking illness among many other examples. On the opposite end of resistance were large-scale open rebellions. The most famous of these was the Nat Turner rebellion. On August 22, 1831, Nat Turner and roughly seventy armed slaves and free blacks went on a revenge
While the most famous of the rebellions was the Nat Turner rebellion, there were hundreds if not thousands of other slave rebellions in varying sizes. Common conditions developed in each slave rebellion. Rebellions were most likely to occur when: slaves outnumbered whites, overseers or plantation owners were away or absent, times of economic hardship, and in case of turmoil at the top of plantation. There is evidence of more than 250 uprisings in the 17th, 18th, and 19th century in the U.S. with each involving at least ten slaves. While these small rebellions were numerous and occurred often, five slave rebellions really stand out in American history. Again, the most famous case of slave rebellion is the Nat Turner rebellion in Virginia. On August 22, 1831, Turner and seventy blacks joined up and went on a killing spree of local whites. After killing Turner’s master and wife, the group moved on and killed between fifty and sixty whites before the rampage ended. Another rebellion was the Stono Rebellion of 1739. This was actually the largest slave rebellion in the U.S. colonies. On Sunday, September 9, 1739, twenty slaves started a revolt after working for free for numerous days. The group started with the killing of their master and moved southward, taking on whites as they came across them. The group of slaves and free blacks ultimately wanted to make it to a colony in Florida where they would be considered free under the Spanish law that took precedent there. Unfortunately, the group was cut off in South Carolina by English soldiers and managed to fight them off for weeks before being defeated. The third most famous slave rebellion in the U.S. was the German Coast Uprising of 1811. Inspired by the Haitian Revolution by Touissant Louverture, slaves revolted in Louisiana, led by Charles Deslondes. On January eighth, Deslondes and his group of twenty men killed his plantation owner’s family. However, they