America @ 250

Contested Liberty: The Paradox of 1776 and the Black Experience in Revolutionary South Carolina

The Paradox of 1776

The Paradox of 1776 was the simultaneous birth of a republic dedicated to “universal” liberty, all while practicing the aggressive preservation of a racialized system of lifetime bondage. For white patriots, “liberty” meant political sovereignty and freedom from British taxation. For Black Americans, “liberty” meant literal freedom from chains.

The Declaration of Independence-The Purged Clause

The Anti-Slave Trade Clause

In Thomas Jefferson’s original draft of the Declaration of Independence, he included a vehement 168-word condemnation of King George III’s support of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. To maintain political coalition, Southern delegates-most aggressively from South Carolina and Georgia-demanded its complete excision before the final publication of July 4, 1776. Also note, for the Declaration of Independence to pass, the vote had to be unanimous which would not have happened if the Southern states did not get their way. And let’s also be clear, even with Thomas Jefferson condemning the role of King George III, he was not speaking on condemning, nor abolishing slavery in the United States.

The Legal Status Quo: The South Carolina Act of 1740

Formerly known as The South Carolina Negro Act of 1740, this Act was enacted following the Stono Rebellion of 1739. It immediately deprived enslaved individuals of their natural rights under the law explicitly prohibiting assembly, self-emancipation, literacy and unauthorized movement. This act became the framework for many Southern Slave Codes.

“….negroes, indians, mulatoes, and mestizos, shall be absolute slaves and follow the condition of the mother. No slave shall go out of the limits of Charleston without a ticket, nor assemble in groups, nor be taught to write….“

Flight to Freedom-Boston King’s Narrative

Boston King, and enslaved preacher and carpenter, was born on a Lowcountry planation in Charleston. Facing a brutal evasion of justice from his master, Boston King flees to British lines in 1780 during the Siege of Charleston. Once in service of the British, he fights for his freedom in various ways, including becoming an elite courier, surviving the smallpox epidemic and fulfilling maritime service on a British Man-o-War.

” I began to feel the happiness of liberty, of which I knew nothing before, although I was grieved at the thoughts of leaving my friends and relations.” —Boston King

“Black Currency” Sumter’s Law and General Nathanael Greene

Sumter’s Law (1781): Devised by Patriot Brigadier General Thomas Sumter, “The Gamecock”, to solve severe recruitment shortages, the policy offered poor, white Backcountry recruits a bounty paid in confiscated Loyalist “plunder”–which explicitly meant literal human beings. Enlistment for ten months guaranteed a private soldier “one healthy negro.” General Nathanael Greene condoned the system out of absolute military desperation to maintain his lines, keeping General George Washington informed of the harsh exigencies of the Southern Campaign. Enslaved Black bodies were being used to pay for white independence.

The Climax of 1783 Post-War Realities

The Evacuation of Charleston & New York

As the American Revolutionary War drew to a close a desperate panic erupted as American slaveholders flooded British camps to reclaim their lost, but legal “human” property. However, I was not lost. The British did keep their promise, as many, including Boston King and his wife, Violet, were evacuated through the ports of Charleston and New York. They boarded the ship L’Abondance and departed from the Port of New York, docking at the port of Birchtown, Nova Scotia.

Even with this triumph, many enslaved people were lost to the bounty system or captured and returned to the torturous life of re-enslavement, bolstering the economy of the American South.

Conclusion

We must remember that the Revolutionary War was not a singular war for liberty, but a multi-sided contest over the definitions of property and personhood. Let us remember all that the war was, including the lasting legacy of using human beings as a wartime financial instrument. It was the time of The Paradox of 1776, embedding a structural flaw into American jurisprudence that would ultimately fracture the nation.

Chronological Timeline of the Revolution in South Carolina

1740 The South Carolina Assembly enacts the Negro Act of 1740, codifying absolute
chattel slavery and establishing strict police controls over the province’s Black
majority population.

Nov 1775 Royal Governor Lord Dunmore issues his Proclamation in Virginia, offering
freedom to rebel-owned enslaved people who bear arms for the Crown, igniting
widespread panic among Southern slaveholders.

July 1776 The Continental Congress signs the Declaration of Independence, striking
Thomas Jefferson’s clause condemning the transatlantic slave trade to preserve
unity with South Carolina and Georgia delegates.

May 1780 British forces successfully siege and capture Charleston. Boston King escapes his
master’s workshop and seeks asylum within British lines, entering royal service.

April 1781 Brigadier General Thomas Sumter institutes Sumter’s Law. Major General
Nathanael Greene authorizes the recruitment bounty system, allowing the use of
confiscated enslaved people to pay Backcountry militia forces.

Dec 1782 The British army evacuates Charleston, transporting thousands of free Black
refugees, Loyalist soldiers, and laborers out of the immediate theater of war.

Nov 1783 The Treaty of Paris takes official effect. Having successfully defended his claim to
freedom, Boston King is recorded in the Book of Negroes in New York and
evacuated to Nova Scotia.

Contested Liberty: The Paradox of 1776 and the Black Experience in Revolutionary South Carolina Book List

The Negro Act of 1740: A History by Peter Charles Hoffer

Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves and the American Revolution by Simon Schama

The Southern Strategy: Britain’s Conquest of South Carolina and Georgia 1775-1780 by David K. Wilson

Liberty is Sweet: The Hidden History of the American Revolution by Woody Holton

The Life of Boston King: Black Loyalist, Minister and Master Carpenter edited by Ruth Holmes Whitehead and Carmelita Robertson

The Forgotten Fifth: African Americans in the Age of Revolution by Gary B. Nash

The Quaker and the Gamecock: Nathanael Greene, Thomas Sumter, and the Revolutionary War for the Soul of the South by Andrew Waters