Tyrannicide uses a captivating narrative to unpack the experiences of slavery and slave law in South Carolina and Massachusetts during the Revolutionary Era. In 1779; during the midst of the American Revolution; thirty-four South Carolina slaves escaped aboard a British privateer and survived several naval battles until the Massachusetts brig Tyrannicide led them to Massachusetts. Over the next four years; the slaves became the center of a legal dispute between the two states. The case affected slave law and highlighted the profound differences between how the “terrible institution†was practiced in the North and the South; in ways that would foreground issues eventually leading to the Civil War.Emily Blanck uses the Tyrannicide affair and the slaves involved as a lens through which to view contrasting slaveholding cultures and ideas of African American democracy. Blanck’s examination of the debate analyzes crucial questions: How could the colonies unify when they viewed one of America’s foundational institutions in fundamentally different ways? How would fugitive slaves be handled legally and ethically? Blanck shows how the legal and political battles that resulted from the affair reveal much about revolutionary ideals and states’ rights at a time when notions of the New Republic―and philosophies about the unity of American states―were being created.
#579608 in Books University of Georgia Press 1998-09-01 1998-09-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.21 x 1.19 x 6.14l; 1.64 #File Name: 0820320625592 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. I have enjoyed reading this book about the Desoto expeditionBy CustomerI have enjoyed reading this book about the Desoto expedition. It would be more beneficial if it made a better attempt to locate the expeditionon numerous maps during each significant tribal encounter. There are numerous references to illustrations and definitions that are hard to find. Although the book with the full story coming from each of the four " Choniclers" is much more expensive; I will be ordering it soon. Overall; this book has been an easy read with some elaborations I did not know about; It would be slightly better if the text font were larger. I am only 47 and I have never needed glasses but it is getting hard to read small text within 24" from my eyes.5 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Excellent Telling of Desotos 4 Year Trek and the Early American Indian Culture He EncounteredBy Daniel HurleyWhile reading Tony Horwitz's recent book; "A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World"; about his travels through the Americas to rediscover the early explorers and colonists that preceded Jamestown and Plymouth; I became fascinated with those who came to America a full 100 years before Jamestown; particularly Hernando De Soto's 4 year plunge into the wilderness of America with his 600 man army in 1539. In spite of failures by previous Spanish explorers; including one army that lost all but 4 men; De Soto marches throughout the entire southeast from Florida; as far north as Tennessee and North Carolina to as far west as northeast Texas in a vain search for gold and other precious metals. De Soto's journey is fascinating in that he marches through the wilderness and unknown with an unusual measure of confidence while encountering an amazing society of Indian tribes totally unlike what American's perceive of the Indian culture based on their knowledge of American Indians post Jamestown. These tribes had concentrated villages with advanced agricultural development; a networked culture with a central chief; an upper class and they utilized great mounds for the base of the homes of their chiefs and to a lesser degree; their other important tribal members. Based on eye witness accounts left in chronicles and secondary sources; Hudson; tells the story of De Soto's travels and encounters with the Indians that is even more fascinating by Hudson's ability; aided by archeology; to trace a pretty accurate mapping of De Soto's travels. The cruelty inflicted by De Soto and his followers seems counter productive particularly as they are frequently at war with the various tribes they encounter as they in turn depend on the Indians supplies for survival. Thus 220 years before Sherman's march; De Soto also lived off the land creating even greater devastation in his wake. What is very interesting is the detail about the Indians encountered; the names of the towns; biographies on the various chiefs; the detail of their lifestyle and the intriguing explanations of the built up mounds that are still present throughout southeast America. The initial part of the book provides a good history of the early Spanish explorations before de Soto; the closing chapters explains what may have happened to these advanced Indian cultures that were in apparent decline before de Soto and virtually melted away before the tribes known today became prevalent like the Cherokees; the Creeks; Chickasaws etc. The final section covers the great debate and documentation of De Soto's route that was seemingly well documented through the Smithsonian but has more recently been proven to be less accurate by current scholars such as Hudson. If you are only interested in de Soto's travels; this is the meat of the book and whether you have interest in the final sections; this is still one of the best books on De Soto and those lost American tribes who seem related to the Aztecs without the stone necessary to similar stone structures; they in turned built mounds.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy dorr dennisthe last word on de solo
