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Impact Of The Stono And Nat Turner 's Rebellions

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Matthew Howard Impact of the Stono and Nat Turner’s Rebellions: Which was Worse Slavery was an important economic factor, in the South, from colonial time through the early years of the United States to the end of the Civil War. The methods used by the slaveholder, who owned large scale plantations, in the south were harsh on the slave. Slaves were viewed as material properties used for to be used for economic gain. One large scale plantation owner named John R. Williams wrote to another slave , in a letter, "...Africans do seem to be made to be slaves. Their coarse manners and slow wits show that they need outlet guidance..."1* Masters would do what was necessary to keep the slave obedient and productive. This meant slaves that misbehaved would be physically punished, lose privileges, or maybe even sold, separating them from their families. For these reasons slave often didn 't misbehave, but tension that builds up will be released in often violent ways. This is the reason for frequent slave revolts. The these revolts were often led by a person or a group of people. They would gather the unhappy slaves and lead them to rebel. Large slave rebellions were quickly dealt with by state militias. After the revolts started, a militia would gather and quickly break up the groups. Whites outnumbered Blacks in the south, so militias could not only use their better access to weapons, but also their number to stop slave revolts. After rebellions a fear of more revolts would come

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