Slavery

HIST

September 20, 2014

The Stono Rebellion

In 1739, a group of native Africans rebelled against the plantation owners and farmers who they were said to belong to. The twenty or so men broke into a store and stole some guns. They killed the store owners and began to march towards Florida. They believed that they would gain their freedom once they reached it. This is believed to be a central turning point in the history of slavery in South Carolina.

This rebellion cause many things to change in the lives of slaves during this period of time. Once the slaves had all be recaptured and executed, there were laws that were created specifically in order to prevent further rebellion. These slaves would no longer be able to gather in groups. This was in order to assure that they could not make any more plans. Additionally, many of their privileges were stripped from them, like the right to grow their own food. They would also not be allowed to learn to read.

All of this would have an effect on the relations between the whites and the blacks for obvious reasons. The fact that the slaves could no longer grow their own food would out each slave and their children at the mercy of their owner. Their owner could then use lack of food to persuade the slave to do what ever he wanted. While this seems detrimental because it would cause the slaves to grow weak, contract disease, and die, it could be a very effective negotiating tool to be used.

Another tool that they implemented, in order to regrow some trust between the slaves and the whites, was rewarding the blacks. Some of the slaves involved in the rebellion were forced into that situation after they hid their masters from the slaves trying to kill them.

This rebellion especially put a strain on the relationship between the blacks and white but it helped the relations between the settlers and the Native Americans. The governor offered the employ Native Americans in the aftermath of the rebellion in order to...