Gabriel Prosser's Slave Revolt
Gabriel Prosser's Slave Revolt, which took place on August 30, 1800, was a significant but ultimately unsuccessful uprising led by the enslaved African American Gabriel Prosser in Richmond, Virginia. Born around 1776, Prosser was a skilled blacksmith who had received some education, allowing him to travel beyond the confines of his plantation. Inspired by the successful Haitian Revolution, he and fellow enslaved individuals plotted to seize a military arsenal and overthrow their oppressors, aiming to kill all the white inhabitants and capture the Virginia Governor, James Monroe. However, their plans were thwarted when the plot was leaked, leading to a rapid response from the state militia. On the day of the revolt, heavy rains hindered their movement, and the assembled group of nearly 1,000 enslaved people was dispersed. Many ringleaders were captured and executed in the aftermath, while Prosser managed to evade capture for a time before being apprehended and ultimately executed on October 10, 1800. Despite its failure, the revolt became an enduring symbol of the struggle for freedom among enslaved people and foreshadowed the larger conflicts surrounding slavery that would unfold in America in the decades to come.
Gabriel Prosser's Slave Revolt
Gabriel Prosser's Slave Revolt
On August 30, 1800, an African American slave named Gabriel Prosser led an unsuccessful slave revolt in Richmond, Virginia. Ruthlessly crushed, it became a symbol of the struggle for freedom in the decades to follow before the dream of emancipation would be realized during the Civil War in the 1860s.
Prosser was born sometime in 1776, though the exact date is not certain, on a plantation owned by Thomas Henry Prosser's family in Henrico County, Virginia, not far from Richmond. He received some education in his youth, a rare occurrence for a slave, and was also trained as a blacksmith. This valuable skill gave him the opportunity to travel beyond the Prosser plantation, since like many other such slaves he was hired out by his master for various jobs. He and his fellow skilled slaves suffered under many unfair restrictions and were permitted to retain only a small portion of the payment for their labors, but nevertheless got the chance to see the world beyond their own plantations and to meet each other. Prosser and some other such “privileged” slaves began to plot a rebellion, inspired in part by the example of Haiti where African slaves successfully overthrew their white masters and established their own independent nation.
In 1800 Prosser and his cohorts decided to seize a military arsenal in Richmond. They enlisted other slaves in their cause, planning to kill all the whites after an assault on the city on August 30. Prosser also hoped to capture Virginia Governor James Monroe of Virginia, later president of the United States. However, news of the plot was leaked to the authorities, and the state militia was mustered. When roughly 1,000 slaves gathered on August 30 as planned, they also had to contend with massive unexpected rainstorms that washed away a bridge on their route to Richmond. Upon arriving, the slaves were dispersed by the militia, which captured and executed several dozen ringleaders.
Prosser, however, was able to elude the authorities for a while. He traveled down the Chickahominy River looking for a means of escape. Governor Monroe offered a $300 reward, a substantial amount for the times, and on September 24, 1800, Prosser was eventually found and captured on a ship in the port of Norfolk. On October 10, 1800, he was executed by hanging in the center of Richmond.