Creole case
Encyclopedia
The Creole case was the result of a slave rebellion in 1841 on board the Creole, a ship involved in the United States
coastwise slave trade
.
named Creole was transporting 135 slaves between Hampton Roads
, Virginia
, and New Orleans, Louisiana
.
On November 7, 1841, led by Madison Washington
, nineteen male slaves on board the Creole revolted, overwhelmed the crew and directed the ship be taken to Liberia
. On being told such a voyage was impossible with the current stores and provisions, the ringleaders decided to head instead for Nassau
on the island of New Providence
in the Bahamas, then a British
colony
. Slavery had been banned in all territories under British law since 1838. During the revolt, a white slave trader, John R. Hewell, was killed, and a slave died later of heavy wounds (Schoenherr).
On November 9, 1841, the Creole arrived at Nassau, where it was first boarded by the harbor pilot
and his crew, all local black Bahamians. They told the passengers that, under Bahamian colonial law, they were now free and advised them to go ashore at once. The Quarantine Officer came aboard and, as the captain Robert Ensor was badly wounded, took First Mate Zephaniah Gifford to inform the American Consul of events. At the request of the American Consul, the Governor of the Bahamas ordered a guard of 24 black soldiers, under the command of a white officer, on board the Creole to prevent the escape of those implicated in Hewell's death. This also prevented the dispersal of the former slaves.
Fearing the application of British law regarding slavery, the American Consul tried to organize a recapture of the Creole with the help of American sailors on the island. The intention was to sail her out of British jurisdiction with her 'cargo' still aboard. The attempt was made on November 12th but was foiled. A local Bahamian who had followed the Americans shouted a warning to the officer of the guard aboard the Creole, who threatened to fire into their approaching boat, which withdrew.
After an investigation by magistrates, on Friday, 13 November 1842, the Bahamian Attorney-General came aboard and told the nineteen mutineers they would be detained: the remainder were informed that 'you are free, and at liberty to go onshore, and wherever you please'. A fleet of small boats manned by locals, which had until then surrounded the brig at a distance, immediately came forward. The boatmen were instructed by the Attorney-General not to set foot aboard the Creole but to take off such of her passengers as wished to leave. Most did so, although three women, one girl, and a boy chose to hide on board, finally returning to New Orleans. The next day, a ship was advertised, paid for by the New Providence government and bound for Jamaica, to take passengers to that island 'passage paid'. Numbers of the blacks from the Creole left aboard it.
The arrest of the conspirators may have sufficiently placated the American public and government, as it dropped its claims. Because there was no extradition treaty between Britain and America and, as the British authorities felt no breach of British or maritime law had taken place, after a special session of the Admiralty Court in Nassau to consider a charge of piracy
, the surviving 17 mutineers were released on April 16 1842.
Meanwhile the Creole had sailed back to New Orleans, arriving on December 2, 1841, with only five slaves still aboard. There, news that her former cargo had been released by British authorities caused outrage among the Southern states and something of a diplomatic row between America and Britain.
Less than a year later the Creole herself was wrecked in a violent storm while in harbour at Funchal
, Madeira.
and the United States
, and political rumblings within the United States itself.
Secretary of State
Daniel Webster
stated that the slaves were legal properties and demanded their return. By this time however Great Britain had ended slavery in its nation and its colonies, so the U.S. claim was rejected on the grounds that, Nassau being British territory, British law must be applied, and under that the 'slaves' aboard the Creole were to be considered passengers. As such, unless they could be proved to have broken local or maritime law, it would be false imprisonment to detain them against their will.
Abolitionist Charles Sumner
argued that the slaves "became free men when taken, by the voluntary action of their owners, beyond the jurisdiction of the slave states." Representative Joshua Reed Giddings
of Ohio
introduced a series of nine resolutions in the United States House of Representatives
that argued that Virginia state law did not apply to slaves outside of Virginian waters, and that the U.S. federal government should not act to protect the rights of the slaveholders in this case. The resolutions provoked strong emotions. The House censure
d Giddings, who promptly resigned. The voters of Ohio reelected him soon afterwards.
The Creole revolt ignited the attack on slavery by northern abolitionists in 1842 (Schoenherr). In a New York Evangelist newspaper story, “The Hero Mutineers,” Madison Washington was named the ‘romantic hero.’ This is so because Madison showed his empathy towards the white crew members on the Creole. He stopped his fellow slave mates from murdering them, and even dressed the sailors’ wounds after the revolt (Schoenherr). Eleven year later in 1852 noted abolitionist Frederick Douglass
wrote a fictionalized version of the event and Washington's part in it, The Heroic Slave
.
The issue roused strong feelings on both sides of the Atlantic and arose during the discussions that produced the Webster-Ashburton Treaty
of 1842. According to a report in The Times, quoting the 'New York Courier and Inquirer', the American secretary of state raised it in a letter to Lord Ashburton
: "The Creole case is presented in strong terms by Mr Webster in a letter (which, when published, will bring all the anti-slavery people about his ears)..." To this Lord Ashburton replied that as the case had effectively arisen after his departure from England he was ‘not empowered to treat upon the subject’. He reaffirmed the position that as slavery was no longer recognized under British law any foreign slave arriving in British possessions was automatically considered as free - as was also the case in those American states which did not recognize slavery. He did however promise that British officials in the West Indies would be given ‘directions’...'to do nothing in this respect when it can be properly avoided’ in the interests of ‘good neighbourhood’. Among other declarations, the Webster-Ashburton Treaty also called for a final end to the slave trade on the high seas, to be enforced by both signatories.
After 15 years of negotiation and arbitration, the British government agreed to pay $110,000 to the owners of the ship's "cargo."
A similar slave rebellion and takeover of a ship took place on the high seas in 1839 on board the Amistad.
Crew:
Passengers:
Leaders of the slave revolt:
Participants:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
coastwise slave trade
Coastwise slave trade
The coastwise slave trade existed along the eastern coastal areas of North America. Shiploads and boatloads of slaves were transported from place to place on the waterways that exist there. Hundreds of vessels of various sizes and capacities were employed in the transporting of slaves from place...
.
The revolt
In 1841, a brigBrig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
named Creole was transporting 135 slaves between Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, and New Orleans, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
.
On November 7, 1841, led by Madison Washington
Madison Washington
Madison Washington was the instigator of a slave revolt on board the brig Creole in 1841. This slave ship was transporting Washington, the ship's slave cook, as well as 134 other slaves from Virginia to New Orleans.On the night of Nov...
, nineteen male slaves on board the Creole revolted, overwhelmed the crew and directed the ship be taken to Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
. On being told such a voyage was impossible with the current stores and provisions, the ringleaders decided to head instead for Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
on the island of New Providence
New Providence
New Providence is the most populous island in the Bahamas, containing more than 70% of the total population. It also houses the national capital city, Nassau.The island was originally under Spanish control following Christopher Columbus' discovery of the New World, but the Spanish government showed...
in the Bahamas, then a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
. Slavery had been banned in all territories under British law since 1838. During the revolt, a white slave trader, John R. Hewell, was killed, and a slave died later of heavy wounds (Schoenherr).
On November 9, 1841, the Creole arrived at Nassau, where it was first boarded by the harbor pilot
Maritime pilot
A pilot is a mariner who guides ships through dangerous or congested waters, such as harbours or river mouths. With the exception of the Panama Canal, the pilot is only an advisor, as the captain remains in legal, overriding command of the vessel....
and his crew, all local black Bahamians. They told the passengers that, under Bahamian colonial law, they were now free and advised them to go ashore at once. The Quarantine Officer came aboard and, as the captain Robert Ensor was badly wounded, took First Mate Zephaniah Gifford to inform the American Consul of events. At the request of the American Consul, the Governor of the Bahamas ordered a guard of 24 black soldiers, under the command of a white officer, on board the Creole to prevent the escape of those implicated in Hewell's death. This also prevented the dispersal of the former slaves.
Fearing the application of British law regarding slavery, the American Consul tried to organize a recapture of the Creole with the help of American sailors on the island. The intention was to sail her out of British jurisdiction with her 'cargo' still aboard. The attempt was made on November 12th but was foiled. A local Bahamian who had followed the Americans shouted a warning to the officer of the guard aboard the Creole, who threatened to fire into their approaching boat, which withdrew.
After an investigation by magistrates, on Friday, 13 November 1842, the Bahamian Attorney-General came aboard and told the nineteen mutineers they would be detained: the remainder were informed that 'you are free, and at liberty to go onshore, and wherever you please'. A fleet of small boats manned by locals, which had until then surrounded the brig at a distance, immediately came forward. The boatmen were instructed by the Attorney-General not to set foot aboard the Creole but to take off such of her passengers as wished to leave. Most did so, although three women, one girl, and a boy chose to hide on board, finally returning to New Orleans. The next day, a ship was advertised, paid for by the New Providence government and bound for Jamaica, to take passengers to that island 'passage paid'. Numbers of the blacks from the Creole left aboard it.
The arrest of the conspirators may have sufficiently placated the American public and government, as it dropped its claims. Because there was no extradition treaty between Britain and America and, as the British authorities felt no breach of British or maritime law had taken place, after a special session of the Admiralty Court in Nassau to consider a charge of piracy
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
, the surviving 17 mutineers were released on April 16 1842.
Meanwhile the Creole had sailed back to New Orleans, arriving on December 2, 1841, with only five slaves still aboard. There, news that her former cargo had been released by British authorities caused outrage among the Southern states and something of a diplomatic row between America and Britain.
Less than a year later the Creole herself was wrecked in a violent storm while in harbour at Funchal
Funchal
Funchal is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira. The city has a population of 112,015 and has been the capital of Madeira for more than five centuries.-Etymology:...
, Madeira.
Political consequences
The Creole case generated diplomatic tension between Great BritainGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and political rumblings within the United States itself.
Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster was a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts during the period leading up to the Civil War. He first rose to regional prominence through his defense of New England shipping interests...
stated that the slaves were legal properties and demanded their return. By this time however Great Britain had ended slavery in its nation and its colonies, so the U.S. claim was rejected on the grounds that, Nassau being British territory, British law must be applied, and under that the 'slaves' aboard the Creole were to be considered passengers. As such, unless they could be proved to have broken local or maritime law, it would be false imprisonment to detain them against their will.
Abolitionist Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner was an American politician and senator from Massachusetts. An academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the antislavery forces in Massachusetts and a leader of the Radical Republicans in the United States Senate during the American Civil War and Reconstruction,...
argued that the slaves "became free men when taken, by the voluntary action of their owners, beyond the jurisdiction of the slave states." Representative Joshua Reed Giddings
Joshua Reed Giddings
Joshua Reed Giddings was an American statesman and a prominent opponent of slavery. He represented Ohio in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1838-59. He was at first a member of the Whig Party and was later a Republican.-Life:He was born at Tioga Point, now Athens, Bradford County,...
of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
introduced a series of nine resolutions in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
that argued that Virginia state law did not apply to slaves outside of Virginian waters, and that the U.S. federal government should not act to protect the rights of the slaveholders in this case. The resolutions provoked strong emotions. The House censure
Censure
A censure is an expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism. Among the forms that it can take are a stern rebuke by a legislature, a spiritual penalty imposed by a church, and a negative judgment pronounced on a theological proposition.-Politics:...
d Giddings, who promptly resigned. The voters of Ohio reelected him soon afterwards.
The Creole revolt ignited the attack on slavery by northern abolitionists in 1842 (Schoenherr). In a New York Evangelist newspaper story, “The Hero Mutineers,” Madison Washington was named the ‘romantic hero.’ This is so because Madison showed his empathy towards the white crew members on the Creole. He stopped his fellow slave mates from murdering them, and even dressed the sailors’ wounds after the revolt (Schoenherr). Eleven year later in 1852 noted abolitionist Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass was an American social reformer, orator, writer and statesman. After escaping from slavery, he became a leader of the abolitionist movement, gaining note for his dazzling oratory and incisive antislavery writing...
wrote a fictionalized version of the event and Washington's part in it, The Heroic Slave
The Heroic Slave
The Heroic Slave, a Thrilling Narrative of the Adventures of Madison Washington, in Pursuit of Liberty is a short piece of fiction written by famous abolitionist Frederick Douglass. When the Rochester Ladies' Anti Slavery Society asked Douglass for a short story to go in their collection,...
.
The issue roused strong feelings on both sides of the Atlantic and arose during the discussions that produced the Webster-Ashburton Treaty
Webster-Ashburton Treaty
The Webster–Ashburton Treaty, signed August 9, 1842, was a treaty resolving several border issues between the United States and the British North American colonies...
of 1842. According to a report in The Times, quoting the 'New York Courier and Inquirer', the American secretary of state raised it in a letter to Lord Ashburton
Baron Ashburton
Baron Ashburton, of Ashburton in the County of Devon, is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of Great Britain and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.-History:...
: "The Creole case is presented in strong terms by Mr Webster in a letter (which, when published, will bring all the anti-slavery people about his ears)..." To this Lord Ashburton replied that as the case had effectively arisen after his departure from England he was ‘not empowered to treat upon the subject’. He reaffirmed the position that as slavery was no longer recognized under British law any foreign slave arriving in British possessions was automatically considered as free - as was also the case in those American states which did not recognize slavery. He did however promise that British officials in the West Indies would be given ‘directions’...'to do nothing in this respect when it can be properly avoided’ in the interests of ‘good neighbourhood’. Among other declarations, the Webster-Ashburton Treaty also called for a final end to the slave trade on the high seas, to be enforced by both signatories.
After 15 years of negotiation and arbitration, the British government agreed to pay $110,000 to the owners of the ship's "cargo."
A similar slave rebellion and takeover of a ship took place on the high seas in 1839 on board the Amistad.
Crew and passengers on the Creole
Officers:- Robert Ensor, of Richmond, VA, captain, wounded
- Zephaniah C. Gifford, first mate, wounded
- Lucius Stevens, second mate
Crew:
- Blinn Curtis, Owls Head, Maine, wounded
- William Devereux, free man of color, cook and steward
- Francis Foxwell
- Jacques Lacombe, Leconte or Lecompte, French helmsman
- Jacob Leitener, Prussian cook
- John Silvy (Antonio)
- Henry Sperk or Speck
Passengers:
- Captain's wife, baby and niece
- John R. Hewell, slave trader, killed
- Thomas McCargo, slave trader
- Theophilus McCargo, son of Thomas
- Lewis, an old slave of Thomas McCargo
- William Henry Merritt, slave trader
- Jacob Miller
Leaders of the slave revolt:
- Madison WashingtonMadison WashingtonMadison Washington was the instigator of a slave revolt on board the brig Creole in 1841. This slave ship was transporting Washington, the ship's slave cook, as well as 134 other slaves from Virginia to New Orleans.On the night of Nov...
- Ben Blacksmith
- Elijah Morris
- Doc Ruffin
Participants:
- Pompey Garrison
- George Portlock
- Tyler
- Addison
- T. Smallwood
- William Glover
- America Woodis
- George Benton
- Adam Carney
- Reuben Knight
- Jordan Philips
The Giddings Resolutions
- Resolved, That, prior to the Adoption of the Federal Constitution, each of the several States composing this Union exercised full and exclusive jurisdiction over the subject of slavery within its own territory, and possessed full power to continue or abolish it at pleasure.
- Resolved, That, by adopting the Constitution, no part of the aforesaid powers were delegated to the Federal Government, but were reserved by and still pertain to each of the several States.
- Resolved, That, by the 8th section of the 1st article of the Constitution, each of the several States surrendered to the Federal Government all jurisdiction over the subjects of commerce and navigation upon the high seas.
- Resolved. That slavery, being an abridgment of the natural rights of man, can exist only by force of positive municipal law, and is necessarily confined to the territorial jurisdiction of the power creating it.
- Resolved, That when a ship belonging to the citizens of any State of the Union leaves the waters and territory of such State, and enters upon the high seas, the persons on board cease to be subject to the slave laws of such State, and therefore are governed in their relations to each other by, and are amenable to, the laws of the United States.
- Resolved, That when the brig Creole, on her late passage for New Orleans, left the territorial jurisdiction of Virginia, the slave laws of that State ceased to have jurisdiction over the persons on board such brig, and such persons became amenable only to the laws of the United States.
- Resolved, That the persons on board the said ship, in resuming their natural rights of personal liberty, violated no law of the United States, incurred no legal responsibility, and are justly liable to no punishment.
- Resolved, That all attempts to regain possession of or to re-enslave said persons are unauthorized by the Constitution or laws of the United States, and are incompatible with our national honor.
- Resolved, That all attempts to exert our national influence in favor of the coastwise slave trade, or to place this nation in the attitude of maintaining a "commerce in human beings", are subversive to the rights and injurious to the feelings of the free States, are unauthorized by the Constitution, and prejudicial to our national character.