New York Slave Revolt of 1712
| North American slave revolts |
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The New York Slave Revolt of 1712 was an uprising in New York City, in the British Province of New York, of 23 enslaved Africans who killed nine whites and injured another six. More than three times that number of blacks, 70, were arrested and jailed. Of these, 27 were put on trial, and 21 convicted and executed.
Events
While in the early 18th century, New York had one of the largest slave populations of any of England’s colonies, slavery in New York differed from some of the other colonies because there were no large plantations.[1] Enslaved Africans lived near each other, making communication easy. They also often worked among free blacks, a situation that did not exist on most plantations. Slaves in the city could communicate and plan a conspiracy more easily than among those on plantations. They were nevertheless kept under abusive and harsh conditions, and naturally resented their treatment.[2]
The men gathered on the night of April 6, 1712, and set fire to a building on Maiden Lane near Broadway.[2] While the white colonists tried to put out the fire, the enslaved African Americans, armed with guns, hatchets, and swords, attacked them and ran off.[3]
Aftermath
Seventy blacks were arrested and put in jail. Six are reported to have committed suicide. Twenty-seven were put on trial, 21 of whom were convicted and sentenced to death. Twenty were burned to death and one was executed on a breaking wheel. This was a form of punishment no longer used on whites at the time. The severity of punishment was in reaction to white slaveowners' fear of insurrection by slaves.
After the revolt, laws governing the lives of blacks in New York were made more restrictive. African Americans were not permitted to gather in groups of more than three, they were not permitted to carry firearms, and gambling was outlawed. Other crimes, such as property damage, rape, and conspiracy to kill, were made punishable by death. Free blacks were no longer allowed to own land. Slave owners who decided to free their slaves were required to pay a tax of £200, a price much higher than the price of a slave.
References
Further reading
- Berlin, Ira & Harris, Leslie (2005), Slavery in New York, New York: New Press, ISBN 1-56584-997-3.
- Horton, James & Horton, Lois (2005), Slavery and the Making of America, New York: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-517903-X.
- Katz, William Loren (1997), Black Legacy, A History of New York's African Americans, New York: Atheneum, ISBN 0-689-31913-4.
- Johnson, Mat (2007), The Great Negro Plot, New York: Bloomsbury, ISBN 1-58234-099-4 (Fiction).