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Fort Mose : the Free African Community and Militia of Spanish St. Augustine by Shane Alan Runyon a Thesis Submitted in Partial F

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Fort Mose : the Free African Community and Militia of Spanish St. Augustine by Shane Alan Runyon a Thesis Submitted in Partial F Fort Mose : the free African community and militia of Spanish St. Augustine by Shane Alan Runyon A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment Of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in History Montana State University © Copyright by Shane Alan Runyon (1999) Abstract: As early as 1687, the Spanish government in St. Augustine, Florida provided an asylum for African slaves who successfully escaped British plantations in South Carolina. The Florida government offered these slaves freedom not as a humanitarian gesture, but with the hope that this policy could both protect their own colony and unsettle the British government of the Carolinas. By 1740, the former British slaves moved into a military fortification called Fort Mose and became soldiers in the Spanish army. This fort thus became the first free black community in what is now the United States. However, while home to a free black militia, St. Augustine was also home to many slaves. Although some historians have recently examined Florida’s free African community, it remains in partial obscurity. When the history of the black community is told, however, the seemingly obvious contradictions are often ignored and the focus is centered on the free militia only. This thesis examines the creation of Mose and St. Augustine’s inherent paradox in hosting both a slave and free African community. This study covers the history of slaves and free Africans in St. Augustine between the late sixteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Much of the study centers on the early slave population in St. Augustine, the nature of their bondage, and how the city created an environment that allowed a free African population to exist. The principle focus of the study is race relations in the nation’s oldest community, how white residents, free Africans, and enslaved Africans interacted, and how the Spanish government used a policy of racial antagonism in an attempt to unsettle British colonies in the Southeast. FORT MOSE: THE FREE AFRICAN COMMUNITY AND MILITIA OF SPANISH ST. AUGUSTINE by Shane Alan Runyon A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment O f the requirements for the degree of Master o f Arts in History MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY-BOZEMAN Bozeman, Montana May 1999 © COPYRIGHT by Shane Alan Runyon 1999 AU Rights Reserved fVb'1* 0 ^ APPROVAL o f a thesis submitted by Shane Alan Runyon This thesis has been read by each member o f the thesis committee and has been found to be satisfactory regarding content, English usage, format, citations, bibliographic style, and consistency, and is ready for submission to the College of Graduate Studies. Dr. Billy G. Smith (Signature) Date Approved for the Department of History Dr. Thomas Wessel Approved for the College of Graduate Studies Dr. Bruce R. McLeod (Signature) Date iii STATEMENT OF PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this thesis in partial fulfillment o f the requirements for a master’s degree at Montana State University-Bozeman, I agree that the Library shall make it available to borrowers under rules o f the Library. IfI have indicated my intention to copyright this thesis by including a copyright notice page, copying is allowable only for scholarly purposes, consistent with “fair use” as prescribed in the U.S. Copyright Law. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this thesis in whole or in parts may be granted only by the copyright holder. Signature ------- Date I 0 I cI____________ iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF T A B L E S ............................................................................................................... vi LIST OF FIGURES............................... ......................:.................................. ................. vii GLOSSARY............................................................................................................................. viii THESIS ABSTRACT ............................................... be 1. IN T R O D U C T IO N ......................................................................................................... I 2. SLAVE LAW AND THE LIVES OF SLAVES ................ ............. ................ ; 1.3 Spanish and British Slave Law................................................... — : ....... 14 The First Slaves ....................... — .....................................'............................... 21 The Labor of the Slaves............................... v.v. __-i.. : .......... 24 The Private Lives o f Slaves...................................... .............. .'............... 29 Florida’s Economy and the Unlikely Freedom of British Slaves.................. 34 3. FLORIDA’S FUGITIVE SLAVE POLICY A N D FORT M O S E ..................... 36 The First Fugitives.................................................................................................... 38 Britain Attacks ........................................................................................................... 41 The Rise of Racial Instability............................................................... 48 The Slaves o f St. Augustine........................................ 55 The Creation o f Fort M ose.................................................................. 59 Jenkins’Ear...................... '•......................................................................................... 64 4. THE ST O N O REBELLION A N D THE W A R OF JENKINS’ E A R .............. 69 South Carolina Prepares for War........................................................................... 71 5. THE CASE OF FRANCISCO MENENDEZ MARQUES 85 TABLE OF CONTENTS— Continued Page 6. THE END OF MOSE5THE END OF SPANISH FLORIDA.........................100 Spanish Recovery.............................................................. %02 The Grinan Report.................................................................................................. 105 The Former Residents o f M o se ...................................................................... HO The End o f Spanish Rule in Florida.................................................................... 114 7. THE SEC O N D SPANISH P E R IO D .................................................. 120 Florida as a Territory of the United States......................................................... 131. 8. C O N C L U S IO N .................................................................................................... 135 BIBLIOGRAPHY..................................................................................................................147 LIST OF TABLES Table Page I. N onw hite Deaths, 1736........................................................................................ 58 VU LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. The Changing borders of South Carolina in the Seventeenth Century.............................................................................. 42 2. St. Augustine and Fort Mose as Drawn in 1762......................................... 81 viii GLOSSARY Asiento—An agreement or contract. Mestizo— A person of Spanish and Indian heritage. Moreno— A dark skinned individual. The term generally denotes a person of intermediate African ancestry. Mulatto— A person of mixed blood, usually of Caucasian and African descent. Pardo— A term used usually to describe a mulatto or anyone with some African ancestry. It often carries the same meaning as mulatto. THESIS ABSTRACT As early as 1687, the Spanish government in St. Augustine, Florida provided an asylum for African slaves who successfully escaped British plantations in South Carolina. The Florida government offered these slaves freedom not as a humanitarian gesture, but with the hope that this policy could both protect their own colony and unsettle the British government of the Carolinas. By 1740, the former British slaves moved into a military fortification called Fort Mose and • became soldiers in the Spanish army. This fort thus became the first free black community in what is now the United States. However, while home to a free black militia, St. Augustine Was.also home to many slaves. Although some historians have recently examined Florida’s free African community, it remains in partial obscurity. When the history of the black community is told, however, the seemingly obvious contradictions are often ignored and the focus is centered on the free .militia only. This thesis examines the creation of Mose and St. Augustine’s inherent paradox in hosting both a slave and free African community. This study covers the history of slaves and free Africans in St. Augustine between the late sixteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Much of the study centers on the early slave population in St. Augustine, the nature of their bondage, and how the city created an environment that allowed a free African population to exist. The principle focus of the study is race relations in the nation’s oldest community, how white residents, free Africans, and enslaved Africans interacted, and how the Spanish government used a policy of racial antagonism in an attempt to unsettle British colonies in the Southeast. I CH APTER I INTRODUCTION More than 80 years before the Declaration of Independence was signed, some African slaves found liberty and the freedom of religious participation in North America. Their freedom was; not guaranteed by a benevolent governor or slave owner within the British colonies, but came from the Spanish in St. Augustine, Florida. Before the terms liberty, virtue, and independence entered the American vernacular, former slaves sought and found
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