French Convention abolishes slavery in French colonies

A broad uprising began in northern Saint-Domingue and developed into the Haitian Revolution. Enslaved people organized military resistance, destroyed plantation infrastructure, and demanded freedom in...

The Danish Crown prohibited its subjects from participating in the Atlantic trade after a transition period, making 1803 the effective date. The delay allowed merchants to accelerate trafficking...

France enacted a law granting equal political rights to free men of color in its colonies. It addressed neither the legal status of enslaved people nor the fundamental power of plantation owners. In...

The first federal Fugitive Slave Act created procedures to seize and return people accused of escaping slavery. It denied alleged fugitives a jury trial and punished those who aided them. Black...

French commissioner Sonthonax proclaimed freedom for enslaved people in northern Saint-Domingue amid the revolution and a military crisis involving French, Spanish, and British forces. Enslaved...

The constitution reorganized the French Republic after the fall of the Jacobin government. Its universal political language sat alongside unresolved questions about colonial citizenship and the status...

A planned revolt involving enslaved and free Black people was exposed after severe weather delayed the gathering. Authorities executed Gabriel and others and tightened controls. The plan drew on...

The constitution affirmed the end of slavery and made Louverture governor for life, while keeping the colony formally within the French empire. It reflected the political authority won by formerly...

Napoleon’s law maintained slavery in colonies returned to France under the Treaty of Amiens and reinstated the slave trade where it had been abolished. It sought to restore plantation wealth and...

A decree required Black, mixed-race, and other people of color to obtain authorization before entering continental France. The measure hardened racial exclusion in the metropole during the same period...