Slave Revolts in a Hemispheric Perspective

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Slave Revolts in a Hemispheric Perspective

• E. Genovese

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What is a slave revolt?
A struggle for Freedom
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Analyzing Slave Insurrections
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General Conditions

• Master-Slave Relationship-absenteeism
  depersonalization
• Economic Distress Famine
• Large Slave-holding Units-100 to 200 hundred
• Split in the Ruling Class-warfare or political
• Blacks heavily outnumbered Whites
• African born outnumbered American born
• Social Structure Black Leadership-autonomous
  development
• Geographical, Social Political
  Environment-terrain opportunity for colony
  formation

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18th century shift in Slave Revolts
From securing freedom to overthrowing slavery as
a social system
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Saint Dominigue
Haiti
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Significance
First Successful Slave Revolt in Modern Era Case
Study for Understanding the problems faced by
European colonies during age of Revolutions
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Historical Setting
Wake of French Revolution Demographics
Uneven Divided White Population Bureaucrats grand
s blancs petit blancs Divided Black
Population gens de couleur slaves
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White Supremacy
Kept mulattos out of power created an
atmosphere of violence, contempt, fear
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Slave Society
Not ready to incorporate liberty, equality,
fraternity Ideology of French Revolution clashed
with Saint Domingue
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Power Struggle
Class Struggle Racial Confrontation Slave
Insurrection
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Three Part Analysis
Chronological development may be analyzed in
three racially marked periods.
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European Colonists wanted to part of Revolution
at home
i
Wanted self-rule so they spread the ideas of
revolution but Declaration of Man was a threat to
their colonial order grands petit blancs
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Armed struggle of the Mulattoes
ii
Vicent Oge Defeated but France Responded Political
Rights to gens de couleur
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Slaves Ignored but Not Deaf or Blind
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Slave Uprising
iii
Boukman Dutty Tousaint LOuverture
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Burning, Killing Looting to Destroying colonial
regime and ultimately win freedom gaining
Independence
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Emancipation secured in 1793 Toussaint becomes
governor general Defeats mulatto resistance
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Napoleon sends military expedition to take the
colony back Toussaint captured Dessalines takes
over Military Skills Yellow Fever Victory 1803
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Impact on the Americas Gave strength to the
revolutionary concept Emancipation
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Fight for freedom independence can be achieved
against all odds
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Gave hope to other slave societies to resist
slavery fight for racial equality
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Leadership of Toussaint L Ouverture inspired
other Latin American leaders to end European
colonialism
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Impact on everything from sugar prices to slave
laws throughout the hemisphere
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Ended Napoleon's ambition for domination Allowed
for Louisiana Purchase New Orleans American
Culture
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Abolition Debate Slaveholders afraid Abolitionis
ts saw peaceful emancipation as a way to avoid
insurrections
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Global Impact Trans-Atlantic repercussions
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a
Displaced French colonial system established an
entirely new social structure and political order
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b
Shifted economic current of Europe, Africa and
the Americas, reshaping property ownership
economic relationships
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c
Radical challenge to colonialism, to slavery,
to the associated ideology of white racialism
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overall
Exemplifies the integration disintegration of
the European non-European forces that have
shaped the modern world