Existing comment:
The Nat Turner Revolt, 1831
The danger of a slave uprising seemed remote to most whites until this incident. In Southampton County, Nat Turner led about sixty fellow slaves in a two-day uprising that left sixty whites dead. The reaction to the event by white southerners can be seen in broadsides, narratives, and private letters. Because Turner's former master was said to be a fair man, every slaveholder in Virginia suddenly felt threatened. |