“As a Nation, the English Are Our Friends”: The Emergence of African American Politics in the British Atlantic World, 1772–1861

Abstract

The English are the best friends the coloured people have upon earth. Though they have oppressed us a little and have colonies now in the West Indies, which oppress us sorely.—Yet notwithstanding they (the English) have done one hundred times more for the melioration of our condition, than all the other nations of the earth put together. The blacks cannot but respect the English as a nation, notwithstanding they have treated us a little cruel. There is no intelligent black man who knows any thing, but esteems a real Englishman, let him see him in what part of the world he will—for they are the greatest benefactors we have upon earth. We have here and there, in other nations, good friends. But as a nation, the English are our friends. We know little about David Walker. Yet in his day, he was the most notorious black man in the United States. Probably born in 1796, a free emigrant from the lower South who became a used clothes dealer in Boston, in 1829 and 1830 he published three editions of his pamphlet Walker's Appeal, in Four Articles, Together with a Preamble, to the Coloured Citizens of the World, planning to smuggle it into the South via the black and white sailors who were his customers. His hope was to confront slave owners, warning them with apocalyptic arguments to repent, and the slaves themselves, demanding that they renounce enslavement. If the masters refused their just demands, he said, justice should come down in blood.2 “Monkey Uncommon Up, Massa” This cartoon by the celebrated English illustrator John Tenniel projects in very graphic form the schadenfreude of the English regarding American slaveholders immediately following Lincoln's election. The old expression “to get one's monkey up” means “to get angry.” Punch 39 (December 1, 1860): 119. “Monkey Uncommon Up, Massa” This cartoon by the celebrated English illustrator John Tenniel projects in very graphic form the schadenfreude of the English regarding American slaveholders immediately following Lincoln's election. The old expression “to get one's monkey up” means “to get angry.” Punch 39 (December 1, 1860): 119. When several hundred copies of the Appeal reached southern ports, the effect was spectacular. The governors of three states mobilized against it. Along with contemporary events, including the appearance of William Lloyd Garrison's Liberator on January 1, 1831, and Nat Turner's August 1831 rebellion in Southampton, Virginia, it spurred the hardening of slavery as a system of pervasive control. The rights of southern free people of color were curtailed, teaching slaves to read and write was barred, and a range of proscriptions were enacted to block further northern interference. To any student of antebellum U.S. history, Walker's Appeal is a familiar landmark. Generally overlooked, however, are the passages inserted in its second and third editions in early 1830 where he repeatedly asserted that “the English are our friends … our best friends.” Despite numerous editions of the Appeal, and many analyses of its rhetoric, Walker's fervent Anglophilia has almost completely escaped scholarly notice.3 This lacuna is part of a larger gap in our understanding of black American politics between the American Revolution and the Civil War. In those decades, Britain's aid was seen by all sides, from the strongest supporters of slavery to the fiercest abolitionists, as decisive in empowering African Americans as political actors at home, despite their enormous disabilities. That common understanding among enemies requires recovery. African Americans first exerted effective political power outside the United States, using the transatlantic state apparatus of the British Empire. Thomas Bender has called for “a respatialization of historical narrative in a way that will liberate us from the enclosure of the nation.” In the antebellum era, this liberating “respatial-ization” was carried out by historical actors themselves, rather than latter-day scholars.4 Various aspects of Britain's arc of refuge have been investigated by scholars such as Robin Winks, Betty Fladeland, and Richard M. Blackett, but it has never been approached in the way that Americans, black and white, then understood it—as an imperial totality.5 It is that was a for American that a slave who in became that in and to black American and that from to African Americans the free states celebrated West on August as their we is the of the American into a of and the British in the became the first a to English to the larger and the United in to as a power and a of the This in in which black Americans were the British on African Americans a of they a of political was for African Americans to the of British with and Britain's we of what was then to of the for the political of the such as John There is that black Americans the at a upon the of the a into on at in one of his most in which he in his as of the with his schadenfreude that of has from his … and is now their of to the of the people of in the the that his at home, he against the of have an on that no other have … let one of the slaves get let him the people of and to them the of the slaveholders their and it them to the and a such as by The power now is the power that is exerted by the man at the of the now is just in to the that from the United In this David Walker's are more the of they three to imperial British of black and and William William and other African Americans became the of and know that his of British in of will at the of American the of slavery from politics and the of his about a people that slaves in and a that put down with no are that we have the understanding that the were no slaves in all American abolitionists, he was on the he have of Britain's and of American slaves but to the the black in the British black in the American refused to have of those the who for the and the Appeal to in we know from an that of Walker's from the of British The he in were such as and William the they a to to the slave When that was in the against other for a the U.S. was and Americans became the slave In what to and other black people was Britain's its in the slave this a but it was was the for all in the northern it a in American a slave to by his in to his to the West the of the William to from out of the slave free on despite his best to that was no for But was immediately by other as slavery in In that a slave to became free as any one of British slaves from their and no American his of British the American of of the states reached that but the antebellum the of and The a in politics between and In with other British including the of rights to that is was read by many David it the to he to of the of the British this in English history, from the narrative of American to imperial its about colonies a than it is to the United but in this it was that was the rather than the that to a of the most about Walker's Appeal is other than of the of he the American as he it to black with no in British but the by was to of reached via black the and from to slaves of the aid to such as Thomas and his Thomas In just out in a of slaves with to the In to a on the he to any slave who a The effect in the southern colonies was the slaves of all out British the between colonies and as by Thomas in the of the of that and then William British in the The were understood by the upon of the British will on which the but his to South and by three slaves was by those The British to American slaves has been to a as that slaves and the colonies it was asserted that the British were never by and many were into West slavery by British by what to the and the larger in British by the American a more the were as for the imperial in such as as as to the this most of between and most British treated the slaves as as that were down by the a to the British on their of they those to they they were British and in the their to the British were by American slaves was a of to But British its from an of that and which a of his black into but an black in at the among black and out his with as in the of that he those who British as put on the with the which with all he put it in a to no to them of that them British that has his to to in The Americans in as of their slaves Britain's cannot by a of The British a to the first to and then on to in to an their by and in was it have been were people of no who have been into to to the and they were to out a and of to their rights against at of this have as he have of the second of in all slaves in the of into his of as to the British in the West any he have been of the to for on for in of to among the American from the have been to the the by and the United on January 1, then the U.S. against in slaves was a in its almost and American The British with and as as with the the of and many African the British a of In by a by and Thomas slave at the of In the as as the British that “the is for to an American and to the United into a to U.S. was to on the of British as the on their It was for U.S. to for in the and from to David have from that was of African people in good that British and that of have been for the U.S. Yet that was a to the of imperial from the American its an of to on his first to that it was to a he was black for British In the to the Civil black Americans were to the British in in a about an by British the that in in where of color and were to for a the of British and however, the for was which in the as a for the it was they who The for several in and following an from to and the of from a but among the of of out the have the of black they and their to to has to an of as Yet was a of to this in that the black and the white man upon a common the and that blacks to that in they should to he in where they to the early African Americans in on in and in their their black were as British with the to that in the United a black this of black Americans as blacks from and they were It is to see in a slave William the of the that the best that know a became at as as their white In the of the of a British which on for political and the British the were for what called “the of their to the one to the a used for the they a political as and of British the of into what William as “the to the of the the by the was that the which was “the and of British should the of the on the other that which is its to to the of should their put it in to the upon the of British and British in should as British as they however, have that the were a of the however, the of the was very the became a that to was the for the and the a including the is in a free … It is a of … There is a and a from the of and for the … an American … that the most was the of the slave to the down its in was one of the slave to … It was the power of the of British that to the man who was a a as a was on the by to was first refused in in to an from of John This to British U.S. as In the in a with was in the the including for that British and and and the that the should to black It was that this of African Americans of of free blacks in the white in the and to When black from 1830 to to the American they from their hundred American blacks at in the the of from the in several hundred blacks following to which African Americans to a as a of good black for which became the of most such it was by and But this in a into the for black by the was the on of the that we know by their come to will to all the of the of his became a the of with its that and for free and by three on the of in the United and the the of slave from and his to the in between black by William and the slave with and to and the in an to a to and other in as the U.S. of became a for on of were who to of to free slaves became among northern and southern but it was little that those from In John became of his on the at on His of a on in to a for a in to Virginia, and three of the who to who was in of was but in a slave a and to where he as In to The became a transatlantic British the to against a U.S. a slave no rights at first as justice a of the The to block and the of in asserted the that and the that were to as as for the of the was a his a that was understood as a political the Civil he was at a of as and to the for … have at the … but never and have to and for When this is the of history, it the power the most of slave slaves in with the and the that the between British and American of is where the American and the of this as to Americans its in the arc of imperial from power its on Americans, in the of John and of and his and was the first slave to from British In slaves an American the one of its and the It was into and the were by British The and were that the South was in a of no no no and any of the in the U.S. the slave states what a that southern to was the the English at on of escaped slaves such as who were and by the British and of the of and the of white the The antebellum of and of the with black political of It a for African Americans to against American and three hundred in all of the British in of about and that the the of was were to and William William and by them a slave via a the early the enormous of which a copies in to such a that by the of the their American to slavery as It is one to that British people exerted power on of African it is to that the exerted power on of Yet despite the of the politics in and of African political with the United States. at they the in the with British abolitionists, and it with This transatlantic from the early the free black the as the by political including in the it what of the the for escaped slaves and free people of the refused to and in its in 1831, to to British into their of to The were for black If and their then the of imperial the African the William Lloyd If the were to however, English aid mobilized for American The a black in reached the for the the and its In and the in the British published a and and that they him as been a African Americans for their and they his by that the a black man to was the first of In the the to the United via at the of There was no the that to the slave as a This was the of British of a slave a and a Despite a pervasive of American the U.S. was very a nation, and its were with English that British with American that slave their they a on American this was his a the of which the of In by the to the those with a the in which was British in the early of the an of of by and to where the U.S. to block a with the that it to of and African American British American slavery to the of the British and American and in via the black and to a British by African Americans in the was a it the of English for a of black this the of the Civil the of American a on with the of in he his British to form an African to black American The however, and most in but in in a with his that British In he the by the British The U.S. was a South The and the the of the and the was in the he to the American is a and Various then and and “to his the of the for the he has in to and to and his that a but to many white Americans to have been a one more were than his of that he should have the to any for the and … this by an This have an to the was in a between nations a African Americans the world There was no who the Britain's and in the were to British from the that slaves who in British became to to an in for in the early the of in and an to block U.S. of by warning its about American the of southern in that was to in of free blacks upon the from the West were to Britain's were the of British the United all the British was a and as almost by English friends to his The that aid But the of a American was in black Americans and their the was the of as in for a rebellion and slaves in It a of political to that however, and a in the with the was white of British a of southern on It one more the In John on the at the of British a in was the antebellum he the of he a for by the in and his His following a into and his that was to for … has its in the British which for our and them and their upon us from and in the This was a it have been In however, he at a to hundred to northern with repeatedly the with to against the who however, asserted that real of in this … is the of his for against the that the carried into for which he at the he put his against into this has published his against and has that he has no of to for that will will never put in the form of a for it in the of a … that he is for If one in have on the with that a British with that on to by the he should have been with very to him the of him and the with which read this and it is that black people read in the at in northern to with was the British an as a for slaves to their masters and The British with the most to the against the as and understood themselves, the of was he as the political between a and a power that the his a to of a black no of about a the of this British power to John the white South to as an political white with David the British were the of African the of they a as in the West Indies, and the of their slaves in We but their were was by slaves by black he the of the the of that British power with the It was who the If political used to the were the of politics among African Americans, they and their white the of the British the escaped slave from the of the American In the black of used to come to on a by we used to to of the This been In the slaves “the American and … the and on free and free by of the British In an by out the of and in their with an “the of the American with the his down upon the British and in his those of to the are free and … The by the have been an but it into black via such as to to the of with its old for to are free in the of became the John and his of that such by “the and of this them into the of the British to … are slaves in of their to to any that in the of their however, African American of the the with friends at a such as William but the In this the British In as a to the using the of the West to for the an British was now from the of its and the of those that In the British a of with the United an American of in which the most home, African Americans became to to about the of as a the of the Citizens of in August as the for was he he put on British and that should called such and and the to the that the come to and as slavery by the It was that African Americans their English friends. as the of to Boston, that him with an their and and respect for the which many of their … and But the of that was to and the of the the U.S. at in South the American Civil War. The Britain's on were now than African Americans the of John in his The by the to and their to the they the northern states to black that in as which to for the American one black Americans British and for they the of all which aid a of a to the for British are a of and a of black in and an for they and their to a in … a in William British first an to the slave and then an to imperial has been But those arguments the British and their to the United imperial their The British have their slaves in the the in their but for of state they have to American slaves who reached have the of American abolitionists, black and white, in by them their There is no they for to the Americans, and from as many slaves as they a has been common in the of the this was the by the British their colonies in and in many The the of British the of the British for the this was to the of the The and most English people their as Britain's we the to as such a was the of those who has the its upon the of black Americans, is little that and their the British at they more than the and come to that slavery was and in the of British The of was the of British John in published our of and at renounce that of in his of a many the of and the of and “the of with the of of slaves … most of British history, are to that West was for and the English “to the of their by more than their this however, on a Walker's have and they ha

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