Causes of The Stono Revolt

Causes of The Stono Revolt
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The morning of Sunday, September 9, 1939 went down in history because of the events that began. It was a day that marked the beginning of the largest slave rebellion in British North America. What was the name of this rebellion? It was the Stono Revolt. According to Hofer (2010), twenty slaves (the exact number is unknown) attacked the Hutchenson’s near the Stono River, beheaded the storekeeper, seized weapons, and started marching towards Florida. This owes to the reality that freedom had been promised by Spanish at St. Augustine. More slaves joined the rebellion and killed almost twenty-five whites before a British militia quashed the rebellion. Historians like Wood (n.d) and Thornton (n.d) cited in Smith (2005) have different explanations for the causes of this revolt. This paper analyzes two reasons for the Stono revolt by explaining how the opinions from Wood (n.d) and Thornton (n.d) are different, evaluating, describing, and interpreting the reasons.
To begin with, Wood (n.d) cited in Smith (2005) argues that the main reason for the Stono was a promise from the Spanish King. The author asserts that the King of Spain had promised freedom and protection to all fugitive slaves. Consequently, slaves belonging to Captain Davies escaped to Augustine where they were received as promised. Other slaves belonging to Captain Macpherson ran away with an advantage of having knowledge of the terrain to Augustine. They, too, were received with honor and praise. In fact, Shuler (2009) asserts that one of them was given a velvet coat. The news of warm reception of slaves (at St. Augustine) spread to other parts, which led to the Stono Revolt. To add insult to injury, Wood (n.d) cited in Smith (2005) argues that the Spanish made suspicious visits in South Carolina prior to the rebellion. It is notable that both Schuler (2009) and Hofer (2010) reveal that the rebelling slaves were travelling to Florida to earn their freedom. This highlights that the promise of the Spanish King was one reason for the Stono Revolt.
On the Contrary, Thornton (n.d) cited in Smith (2005) argues that the militia and Christian background of slaves was the main cause of the Stono Revolt. According to the author, most of the slaves in South Carolina came from Kongo and Angola where the Christian and Catholic religion had been established. Therefore, the author argues that the slaves viewed the opportunity from the Spaniards as a way to acquire their freedom of religion. This is enhanced by the truth that “kongolese slaves would have seen the Spanish offers in terms of freedom of religion” (Wood, n.d). It is also notable that Kongo had multiple civil wars throughout the ei...