The Stono Rebellion: Slave Uprising In South Carolina

In contrast to the other three colonies discussed, the institution of slavery in South Carolina was initiated, legalized, and maintained for distinct reasons; the founders of the colony felt that slavery was absolutely necessary for economic prosperity and their unwavering urge to protect the institution at all costs contributed towards the severity of the slave-enforcement acts and codes. By looking at the legislation passed in South Carolina, one can grasp the extent to which slaves were legally stripped of every right imaginable, suffered barbarous treatment, and were attempted to be rendered psychologically and physically powerless--all because of the deep-seated fear of the enslaved population that was instilled within white slave owners and law-makers. In South Carolina, slavery was a horrendous business that was never questioned ethically or legally. The white settlers coming from Barbados--who had already been involved in the slave trade for years--migrated to South Carolina equipped with slaves already accustomed to difficult climate conditions (similar to South Carolina), which made them more pleasurable to slave owners expecting a strong work force. Another unique aspect to South Carolina was the overwhelming black majority in the colony for it is true that, “by 1708, less than twenty years after the decision to move from white indentured labor to black slave labor, the number of blacks in the colony exceeded whites,” (Higginbotham, 1978, pg. 152). Due to the

The Stono Rebellion was at the time the biggest slave rebellion to ever take place in the American colonies. It came at a time when owning slaves was one of the accepted things in the colonies and the colonists depended on the labor the slaves were doing. Some colonies entire economies depended on it. In South Carolina, there were more slaves than free men in the colony. This was because of the African slave trade.

First of all, the Stono Rebellion was led by an Angolan named Jemmy in South Carolina in 1739. This uprising occurred because slaves in Southern South Carolina wanted to escape to freedom. The enacting of the Security Act of 1739, the fact that it was a Sunday, and the malaria epidemic in the Charlestown were three factors that influenced the timing of Stono Rebellion. The Security Act of 1739 required all white males to carry their firearms to church. Because most of the armed males went to church (on sunday), they were not ready for a rebellion. Furthermore, the malaria epidemic had also weakened many militiamen and regular men to the point of them not being able to fight or function very well. Jemmy and his

The Enlightenment had a profound effect on the declaration of independence and the constitution. There are many ideas and principles that were created during the enlightenment that inspired the founding fathers. Ideas such as separation of powers, liberalism, and that government is supposed to protect the natural rights all came around during the enlightenment. These ideas had a major influence in why we declared independence from England and how we formed The United States of America. These ideas had major influence on America because they are the principles on which america was founded.

The Stono Rebellion was the spark of slave revolts all over the country, which changed the course of history. It was once said that “I think we must get rid of slavery or we must get rid of freedom” (Ralph Waldo Emerson). Some main reasons that the Stono Rebellion happened or caused slave codes to strengthen was because of: the slave’s motives, some of the conflicts that arose during the Stono Rebellion, and the aftermath of the Stono Rebellion. Because of the slave revolt conflict of 1739, known as the Stono Rebellion, the plantation owners of South Carolina compromised by strengthening the slave codes.

On September 9, 1739, the Stono Rebellion took place in the colony of South Carolina. The slaves, lead by an Angolan named Jemmy, stunned the plantation owners in their revolt against their oppressive lifestyle. Their goal was to march all the way to Spanish Florida, but they were eventually stopped by the militia. In total, about 60 white civilians were killed and many more slaves experienced the same fate. This was such a significant uprising, not only because of the lack of information we have about rebellions in general, but because it showed that slaves had the ability to revolt against the harsh lifestyle that was forced upon them. While most historians can agree that this was one of the most influential revolts, the best way to interpret this event is still debated. Some historians, like William Stephen, hone in on the aspect of competition in his piece “Spanish Designs and Slave Resistance”. While other look at specific factors. For example, John K, Thornton sees that the best way to view the Stono Rebellion is to look at the African background of slaves in his essay, “African Dimension of the Stono Rebellion”. Edward A Pearson, for example, asserts gender is the way to comprehend this revolt in his essay “Rebelling As Men”. All of these historians address important factors of the Stono Rebellion, however in order to best understand the Stono Rebellion one must consider both gender and African background and how it increased competition between the English and

The Stono Rebellion occurred in South Carolina on September 9, 1739. A group of about twenty slaves led by a slave named Jemmy went to a local store and attacked. They stole several guns and powder and decapitated the two men working there. The slaves left the decapitated heads on the front porch like they were staring into the distance. The slaves continued to march along what is today’s Highway 17. Along their march, the slaves burned plantations, gathered more to their number, and killed many white slave owners. The slaves also slaughtered the white women and white children of the slave owners. Very few people were spared during the Stono Rebellion. By the time the march was coming to an end, the slaves had killed between twenty and twenty-five white people. The

Jonathan Edwards was a Puritan minister who sparked the era of the Great Awakening with his most famous sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. The Great Awakening was an era in the 18th

The Stono Rebellion took place in South Carolina in 1739. Named after the Stono River, near where many of the whites were killed, the event happened on September 9th, with various reports differing on how long those in the revolt remained at large. The revolt consisted of slaves breaking away from their bondage, taking up arms and joining those in the cause. The rebellion resulted in the deaths of men, women, and children on various properties destroyed by the revolting slaves.

“On Sunday, September 9th, 1739 the British colony of South Carolina was shaken by a slave uprising that culminated with the death of sixty people” (The Stono Rebellion 1739). It was one of the first organized slave revolts in history (Stono Rebellion 1739). As a result, the Stono Rebellion started to change viewpoints on slavery. Slave revolts started to become a problem for plantation owners. Due to this conflict over slave revolts, specifically the Stono Rebellion, South Carolina compromised by passing the Negro Act of 1740 and other laws regarding slavery.

It was the largest slave uprising in the British mainland colonies, with several colonies and Africans killed. A hundred African Americans rose up, got weapons and killed several whites, then afterwards they tried to escape to Florida. The uprising was crushed and the participants executed. The significance of the Stono Rebellion was that it was most serious slave rebellion in the colonial period in South Carolina. The main form of rebellion was running away, though there was nowhere to go this would later on cause slave owners to punish their slaves. The rebellion would also give hope to slaves as well as bring the thought that the slaves have the right to

During the Great Awakening, "religious conflicts divided families, split churches, and fragmented communities, forever altering the religious landscape of colonial America" (Keene, 77). Ministers such as Gilbert Tennent and Jonathan Edwards were leaders of this movement. They believed the only way to reach salvation was by accepting the reality of a sin and opening your heart to grace. Rather than "ministers preaching an empty, dead form of religion" (Keene, 77). To convey this message to his parishioners, "Edwards compared their fate to that of a spider dangling above the pit of eternal damnation, with only God's mercy preventing them from falling in" (Keene, 78). Edward's revival in Massachusetts inspired George Whitefield, an English

In the early 18th century, South Carolina experienced a boom in their rice industry. This caused a shift from a frontier to a plantation economy, affecting the quality of life of slaves. Their tasks switched from farming, hunting, fishing, and raising cattle, to being trapped in the rice fields. The slaves felt much resent for this extremely difficult, straining work. In the 1730s, there was an outbreak of many slave conspiracies in the West Indies, especially in the Bahamas and Antigua. Furthermore, many runaway slaves from South Carolina had made their way down to Florida, where Spain offered them freedom. This inspired slaves to fight for their freedom. As a result of the Stono Rebellion, slaveowners came to fear their slaves and the threat of future uprisings. Because of this fear, The Slave Code of South Carolina of 1740 was created. This code greatly limited rights of the slaves living in the region.

Slave revolts normally happened outside of the plantation system and in large cities were the slaves were able to act more freely. It’s estimated there were at least 250 slave rebellions in America before slavery was abolished in 1865.Most tales of what happened during those rebellions could be bias seen as they were written by whites rather than by the slaves that started the revolt. Since African American slaves accounted for more than one-third of the population in the 18th century, slave rebellions were a large source of fear for white Americans in the south.

The struggle over slavery soon turned violent. On May 21, 1856, proslavery settlers and so-called “border ruffians” from Missouri invaded Lawrence, Kansas, the home of the antislavery government. Armed invaders burned a hotel, looted several homes, and tossed the printing presses