France decrees abolition of slavery in its colonies

The Court ruled that the Mende captives had been illegally kidnapped and enslaved and could not be returned to Spanish claimants. The judgment recognized their right to resist unlawful captivity,...

A decree abolished slavery as the country faced civil conflict. Afro-Uruguayans had long resisted bondage and served in military forces; emancipation did not remove racial inequality or the economic...

The act barred colonial courts from recognizing claims to enslaved persons and penalized officials who enforced them. It did not instantly end all forms of bondage or coerced labor. The measure...

The proclamation of independence from Haiti established a new political order on the eastern side of Hispaniola. The preceding Haitian state had abolished slavery across the island; Dominican...

The Aberdeen Act authorized British courts to treat Brazilian slave ships as pirate vessels and increased Britain’s power to intercept them. It pressured Brazil while extending British imperial...

News of the French emancipation decree triggered revolt in Martinique. The uprising helped force local authorities to proclaim emancipation before the decree’s scheduled implementation. Enslaved...

After an uprising and mass mobilization on St. Croix, von Scholten proclaimed emancipation. The decree followed collective action by enslaved people and ended legal slavery in the islands, though...

The law prohibited the importation of enslaved Africans and strengthened enforcement against the Atlantic trade. It did not free people already enslaved, and the domestic slave trade expanded as...

Congress passed a law requiring federal authorities and residents to assist in the capture and return of people who escaped slavery. It denied alleged freedom seekers ordinary legal protections and...

Black residents of Christiana resisted an armed attempt to seize freedom seekers under the Fugitive Slave Act; slaveholder Edward Gorsuch was killed in the confrontation. Federal authorities...