Death or liberty : African Americans and revolutionary America / Douglas R. Egerton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Egerton, Douglas R.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

African Americans--History--18th century.

African Americans.

Slavery--United States--History--18th century.

Slavery.

United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--African Americans.

United States.

Physical Description:

x, 342 p. : ill., maps.

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2009.

Summary:

This panoramic history of African Americans in colonial America ranges from the Seven Years' War to the election of Jefferson in 1800. Egerton pays special attention to what black Americans did for themselves in these decades, and his narrative brims with compelling portraits of forgotten African American activists and rebels, who battled huge odds and succeeded in finding liberty--if never equality--only in northern states. Egerton concludes that despite the real possibility of peaceful, if gradual, emancipation, the Founders ultimately lacked the courage to end slavery.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

Acknowledgments

PROLOGUE: The Trials of William Lee: A Life in the Age of Revolution

ONE: Equiano's World: The British Atlantic Empire in 1763

TWO: Richard's Cup: Slavery and the Coming of the Revolution

THREE: The Transformation of Colonel Tye: Black Combatants and the war

FOUR: Quok Walker's Suit: Emancipation in the North

FIVE: Absalom's "Meritorious Service": Antislavery in the Upper South

SIX: Captain Vesey's Cargo: Continuity in Georgia and the Carolinas

SEVEN: Mum Bett Takes a Name: The Emergence of Free Black Communities

EIGHT: Harry Washington's Atlantic Crossings: The Migrations of Black Loyalists

NINE: A Suspicion Only: Racism in the Early Republic

TEN: Eli Whitney's Cotton Engine: Expansion and Rebellion

EPILOGUE: General Gabriel's Flag: Unsuccessful Coda to the Revolution

Notes

Index

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

V

W

Y

Z.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (p. [285]-332) and index.

Description based on metadata supplied by the publisher and other sources.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9786611925499

1-281-92549-7

0-19-974367-3

0-19-971923-3

OCLC:

437093204