The University of Southern Mississippi The Aquila Digital Community Dissertations Spring 5-2012 Slavery and Empire: The Development of Slavery in the Natchez District, 1720-1820 Christian Pinnen University of Southern Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations Part of the Cultural History Commons, Social History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Pinnen, Christian, "Slavery and Empire: The Development of Slavery in the Natchez District, 1720-1820" (2012). Dissertations. 821. https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/821 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The University of Southern Mississippi SLAVERY AND EMPIRE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF SLAVERY IN THE NATCHEZ DISTRICT, 1720-1820 by Christian Pinnen Abstract of a Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2012 ABSTRACT SLAVERY AND EMPIRE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF SLAVERY IN THE NATCHEZ DISTRICT, 1720-1820 by Christian Pinnen May 2012 “Slavery and Empire: The Development of Slavery in the Natchez District, 1720- 1820,” examines how slaves and colonists weathered the economic and political upheavals that rocked the Lower Mississippi Valley. The study focuses on the fitful— and often futile—efforts of the French, the English, the Spanish, and the Americans to establish plantation agriculture in Natchez and its environs, a district that emerged as the heart of the “Cotton Kingdom” in the decades following the American Revolution. Before American planters established their hegemony over Natchez, the town was a struggling outpost that changed hands three times over the course of the century. “Slavery and Empire” explores how enslaved Africans struggled to find their footing on this unstable ground. Slaves seized upon many weapons to claim their freedom. Some cast their lots with Indians hostile to their colonial masters, while others tested their chains in the courts. Slaveowners often found the field tilted against them; wars, regime changes, and an unstable economy conspired to place their mastery—not to mention their titles to land and slaves—on unsound footings. The pitched battles between slaves and their owners, along with the contests between colonial subjects and their countries, had a profound effect on a region that became the heart of the Deep South. ii As the French began to settle the Natchez District in the early 1720s, only seventy slaves worked in the fertile Natchez fields for their European masters. Sixty-four of these slaves were African, the rest were bound Native Americans. Over the next century, the slave numbers increased gradually and when Mississippi became a state in 1817, the first census taken shows a slave majority in all counties that the Americans carved out of the Natchez District. Yet Natchez experienced a very uneven development over the course of the century that bridged the first French attempt and American success in creating a slave society in the district. Although slave numbers multiplied, planters, imperial officials, and the enslaved sought every means to contest one another over measures of control and power in Natchez. These constant conflicts, coupled with economic crisis and imperial strive in the lower Mississippi Valley, made for a bumpy road to the pinnacle of planter power and the uncontested reign of King Cotton in the 1820s. iii COPYRIGHT BY CHRISTIAN PINNEN 2012 The University of Southern Mississippi SLAVERY AND EMPIRE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF SLAVERY IN THE NATCHEZ DISTRICT, 1720-1820 by Christian Pinnen A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Approved: _William Scarborough_________________ Director _Max Grivno_________________________ _Sarah Franklin_______________________ _Mark Smith_________________________ _Louis Kyriakoudes___________________ _Kyle Zelner_________________________ _Susan A. Siltanen____________________ Dean of the Graduate School May 2012 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I began this project in 2008 directly after the completion of my Master’s Thesis. The following four years went by at a confounding speed, and along the way I have been privileged to meet many people to whom I find myself now heavily indebted. Friends who shared the scholarly torments of graduate school—either as fellow students or as observers—and professors who supported me unfailingly along the way. I am fortunate to have many mentors at The University of Southern Mississippi. From the beginning of my tenure there were Kyle Zelner and William Scarborough. Professor Scarborough relentlessly forced me to become a better historian by insisting that I was wrong more often than right regarding my assumptions of southern history. He was indispensable in my training as a historian, in learning to meticulously document my research, and insisting I stay on path to finish on time. He taught me these things, and so much more, about what it means to be a dedicated historian and teacher. Dr. Zelner likewise provided me with many lessons in improving my writing in English that I so desperately needed. I will always remember an early course for which he read a draft of every paper. He was diligent in teaching me the complex ins and outs of a foreign language and setting me on the right path. The next two people I wish to mention shaped my development as a scholar even further. This dissertation project required guidance in Latin American history, and Dr. Sarah Franklin was vital in her extensive efforts to further my training. Dr. Franklin encouraged me to place Natchez in context with Caribbean and South American societies, and she urged me to compare the different systems of slavery found in those iv parts of the world. She believed in me at every step and continued to be a resource for motivation and consolation throughout my education. Dr. Max Grivno took an early interest in this project, and his encouragement and unwillingness to let me settle for less than excellence has shepherded me through the last three years of graduate school. He has sharpened my often inchoate thoughts, and reemphasized the importance of precise, thorough scholarship. He insisted that I ask large questions of a small corner of slavery’s empire. He read draft after draft of applications, conference papers, and dissertation chapters and never tired; rather, he continued to encourage me to move beyond what I judged satisfactory. His critique of both writing and argument was indispensable, and he continues to develop me into a passable historian. I owe him a great debt. Mark Smith graciously served as an outside reader and Bo Morgan kindly read the introduction and his comments improved the manuscript tremendously. I am honored to call them among my mentors and friends in the future. The research and writing of this dissertation would have been impossible without the generous financial support of several institutions. A fellowship from the History Department allowed me to undertake my graduate studies, while the McCain dissertation fellowship afforded me the opportunity to spend the 2011-12 academic year completing the study. I received research fellowships during the writing and research periods that allowed for a timely completion of the dissertation from the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin, the Louisiana History Research Fellowship of the Special Collections at the Louisiana State University Libraries, and the v German Historical Institute’s doctoral fellowship. This project would look very different without the support from these institutions. Many friends helped me during difficult times while I was in grad school, far too many to adequately name them all. I will mention Benjamin Lange. Benjamin, whom I met during our undergraduate studies at the University of Bonn, was my companion on a research trip to Seville, and spent two weeks in the archives, sacrificing his vacation for this project. I owe him for this, and much more. My parents deserve my everlasting gratitude. They continually supported me, allowing me to be the first in my family to attend college. Neither they nor I could ever have foreseen that I would ultimately earn a Ph.D. from an American University. Finally, there is one more person who helped me to finish this dissertation. She never demanded more time for her, or urged me to work harder. She understands who I am and what I do and respects me for it. I dedicate this clumsy work to Sydney, always supportive and ever ready to encourage me with her love and counsel. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iv CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................1 Historiography Slavery and Empire II. A SOUTHERN MIDDLE GROUND: FRANCE AND BRITAIN TRY THEIR LUCK IN COLONIAL NATCHEZ……………………………..30 Establishing a Foundation for French Success in Natchez Growth of the Colony The Natchez Indians Establishing