African Americans in the Revolutionary War

On January 13, 1777, eight Black men in Boston signed a petition. A petition is a letter that asks the government to do something. One of the men was Prince Hall. He was a free Black man. The petition asked Massachusetts to free every enslaved person in the state. It said Black people had a natural right to freedom. The lawmakers did nothing.

One in Five

About 500,000 Black people lived in the colonies in 1775. That was about one in five people. Most of them were enslaved. An enslaved person is owned by someone else and works for no pay. Most enslaved people lived in the South. The war gave some of them a chance to be free. They had to pick a side.

The British Offer

In November 1775, Lord Dunmore made an offer. He was the British governor of Virginia. He said enslaved men would be free if they left rebel owners and fought for the British. Hundreds came to him. In 1779 the British made the offer bigger. Any enslaved person who ran from a Patriot owner to the British would be free. About 20,000 Black people went to the British during the war.

Fighting for the Patriots

Black men fought at Lexington and at Bunker Hill in 1775. Then General Washington said no Black men could join his army. In December 1775 he changed his mind. Free Black men who had fought before could join again. Later most states let Black men join. In 1778 Rhode Island let enslaved men join its army. The state set them free. These men were the First Rhode Island Regiment. They fought at the Battle of Rhode Island in August 1778. About 5,000 Black men fought for the Patriots.

After the War

Some states ended slavery. Vermont banned it in 1777. Pennsylvania passed a law in 1780 to end it slowly. In Massachusetts, judges ended it in 1783. In the South, slavery grew. The British left New York in 1783. More than 3,000 Black people sailed with them. Most went to Nova Scotia in Canada. In 1792 about 1,200 of them sailed to Africa. They started a town called Freetown in Sierra Leone.

On January 13, 1777, eight Black men in Boston signed a petition, a written request to the government. One of them was Prince Hall, a free Black man. The petition asked the Massachusetts lawmakers to free every enslaved person in the state. It said that Black people had "a Natural and Unaliable Right to that freedom." The lawmakers did not act on it.

One in Five

About 500,000 African Americans lived in the thirteen colonies in 1775. That was about one person in five. Around 450,000 of them were enslaved, owned as property and forced to work without pay. Most lived in the South. The war between Britain and the colonies gave some of them a chance at freedom. They had to decide which side offered the better chance.

The British Offer

In November 1775, Lord Dunmore, the British governor of Virginia, made a proclamation, an official public announcement. He promised freedom to enslaved men who left rebel owners and fought for the British. Several hundred reached him within weeks. In 1779 the British commander Henry Clinton widened the offer. Any enslaved person who escaped from a Patriot owner and reached the British would be free. Historians estimate that about 20,000 African Americans went to the British during the war. They worked as laborers, guides, and soldiers.

Fighting for the Patriots

Black men fought at Lexington and Bunker Hill in 1775. That fall, General Washington barred Black men from the Continental Army. In December 1775, after Dunmore's offer, he let free Black men who had already served enlist again. As the war went on, most states needed soldiers and took Black recruits. In February 1778, Rhode Island let enslaved men join the First Rhode Island Regiment. The state freed them and paid their owners. The regiment fought at the Battle of Rhode Island on August 29, 1778. About 5,000 Black soldiers and sailors served the Patriot side. Some counts that include workers reach about 9,000.

After the War

The war ended slavery in some states. Vermont banned it in 1777. Pennsylvania passed a law in 1780 that ended slavery slowly, one generation at a time. In Massachusetts, court rulings ended it by 1783. In the South, slavery grew.

When the British left New York in November 1783, more than 3,000 Black Loyalists sailed with them. British officers wrote their names in a record book called the "Book of Negroes." Most went to Nova Scotia, in Canada. In 1792 about 1,200 of them sailed to Sierra Leone, in West Africa, and founded the town of Freetown.

On January 13, 1777, eight Black men in Boston signed a petition, a written request to the government, and sent it to the Massachusetts legislature. One of them was Prince Hall, a free Black man who had been asking the legislature to end slavery since 1773. The petition asked the lawmakers to free every enslaved person in the state. It said that Black people had "a Natural and Unaliable Right to that freedom," six months after the Declaration of Independence had used nearly the same words. The legislature did not act on it.

One in Five

About 500,000 African Americans lived in the thirteen colonies in 1775, roughly one person in five. Around 450,000 of them were enslaved, owned as property and forced to work without pay, and most of them lived in the South. The war between Britain and the colonies gave some of them a chance at freedom, and they had to decide which side offered the better one.

The British Offer

In November 1775, Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, issued a proclamation, an official public announcement. It promised freedom to enslaved men owned by rebels who were "able and willing to bear Arms" for the British. Several hundred reached his lines within weeks. In 1779 the British commander Henry Clinton widened the offer. Any enslaved person who escaped from a Patriot owner and reached the British would be free, whether or not he fought. Historians estimate that about 20,000 African Americans went to the British during the war. They worked as laborers, guides, pilots, and soldiers.

Fighting for the Patriots

Black men fought at Lexington and Bunker Hill in 1775. That fall, General Washington barred Black men from the Continental Army. In December 1775, after Dunmore's offer, he allowed free Black men who had already served to enlist again. As the war went on and the states ran short of soldiers, most of them took Black recruits.

In February 1778, Rhode Island passed a law that let enslaved men enlist in the First Rhode Island Regiment. The state freed them and paid their owners up to 120 pounds each. The regiment, Black and Native American soldiers under white officers, held the American right wing at the Battle of Rhode Island on August 29, 1778, and turned back three attacks by Hessian troops. An estimated 5,000 Black soldiers and sailors served the Patriot side, and counts that include laborers and other support workers reach about 9,000.

After the War

The war ended slavery in some states. Vermont banned it in its 1777 constitution. Pennsylvania passed a gradual emancipation law in 1780, a law that freed people slowly: children born to enslaved mothers after that year became free at age 28. In Massachusetts, court rulings in 1781 and 1783 ended slavery under the state's new constitution. In the South, slavery grew.

When the British left New York in November 1783, more than 3,000 Black Loyalists sailed with them. British officers recorded their names, ages, and former owners in a ledger called the "Book of Negroes." Most went to Nova Scotia, where they received smaller plots of land than white Loyalists, and some got none. In 1792 about 1,200 of them sailed to Sierra Leone, in West Africa, and founded Freetown.

On January 13, 1777, eight Black men in Boston signed a petition, a written request to the government, and sent it to the Massachusetts Council and House of Representatives. One of them was Prince Hall, a free Black man who had been petitioning the legislature to end slavery since 1773. Four of the eight signers were free, but the petition spoke for "A Great Number of Blackes detained in a State of Slavery." It asked the lawmakers to free every enslaved person in the state and to free their children at age 21. It said that Black people had "a Natural and Unaliable Right to that freedom," six months after the Declaration of Independence had used nearly the same words, and it told the legislature to stop "acting themselves the part which thay condem and oppose in Others." The legislature did not act on it.

One in Five

About 500,000 African Americans lived in the thirteen colonies in 1775, roughly one person in five, and some counts that use a smaller total population put the share nearer one in four. Around 450,000 of them were enslaved, owned as property and forced to work without pay. Most lived in Virginia, Maryland, the Carolinas, and Georgia, where tobacco, rice, and indigo plantations depended on their labor. Slavery was legal in every colony, and northern merchants carried enslaved people on their ships. The war between Britain and the colonies gave some enslaved people a chance at freedom, and they had to judge which side offered the better one.

The British Offer

On November 7, 1775, Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, issued a proclamation, an official public announcement, from a British warship in the Chesapeake Bay. It declared free "all indented Servants, Negroes, or others" belonging to rebels who were "able and willing to bear Arms" for the king. Dunmore formed the men who reached him into a unit he called the Ethiopian Regiment. Several hundred enslaved men joined him within weeks.

On June 30, 1779, the British commander in chief, Henry Clinton, issued the Philipsburg Proclamation from his headquarters in New York. It promised that any enslaved person who escaped from a Patriot owner and reached British lines would be free, with no military service required. Historians estimate that about 20,000 African Americans went to the British during the war. They served as laborers, teamsters, river pilots, guides, and soldiers.

Fighting for the Patriots

Black men fought at Lexington and Bunker Hill in 1775. That fall, General Washington barred both free and enslaved Black men from the Continental Army. In December 1775 he reversed part of the order and allowed free Black men who had already served to enlist again. He told Congress that these men were unhappy at being turned away and might join the British instead. As the war went on and the states ran short of soldiers, most of them took Black recruits, and in most regiments Black and white soldiers served side by side.

Rhode Island went further. On February 14, 1778, its assembly passed a law that let enslaved men enlist in the First Rhode Island Regiment. The state freed them at enlistment and paid their owners up to 120 pounds each. More than 130 enslaved men joined before the assembly repealed the law in June. The regiment, Black and Native American privates under white officers, was one of the few segregated units in the army. At the Battle of Rhode Island on August 29, 1778, it held the American right wing and turned back three attacks by Hessian troops. An estimated 5,000 Black soldiers and sailors served the Patriot side, and counts that include laborers and other support workers reach about 9,000.

After the War

The war ended slavery in some states and not in others. Vermont banned it in its 1777 constitution. Pennsylvania passed a gradual emancipation law in 1780, a law that freed people slowly: no one then enslaved was freed, but children born to enslaved mothers after March 1, 1780, became free at age 28. In Massachusetts, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 1781 and 1783 that slavery could not stand under the state's new constitution, which said that "all men are born free and equal." In the South, where the plantation economy depended on slavery, the number of enslaved people grew.

When the British evacuated New York in November 1783, more than 3,000 Black Loyalists sailed with them. Under the peace treaty the United States had demanded the return of escaped enslaved people, and British officers inspected each person at the docks and recorded name, age, description, and former owner in a ledger called the "Book of Negroes." The ledger survives today, and it is the fullest record of who left. Most went to Nova Scotia, where they received smaller plots of land than white Loyalists, and many got none. In 1792 about 1,200 of them sailed to Sierra Leone, in West Africa, and founded Freetown.