This website is about the Slave who planned a revolt against whites. His name was Denmark Vesey. You might not reconize the name like you would Nat Turner who led a slave revolt. Since Denmark Vesey only planned a slave revolt he's not so popular.

                                  

    The story of Denmark Vesey is an interesting one. Vesey was an ex-slave who had bought his freedom in 1800 after winning the lottery. He opened a carpentry shop and by the year 1817 had saved thousands of dollars. He was literate and well-traveled. He once had the opportunity to return to Africa and be a free man but he had rejected it. The reason, his wife and children were still held in bondage as slaves. Vesey had a deep hatred for slavery. He also hated any white interference in free blacks lives as well. So what was it that pushed Vesey over the edge? Why would a succesful free man risk his life to free others from slavery? Undoubtedly, there were many issues which helped pushed Vesey over the edge. What finally pushed him over the edge was when whites began harrassing the black churches in south Carolina. They would disrupt meetings, and even jailed some of the church leaders. Finally in 1821 the city of Charleston closed the Hampstead Church. This was the church Denmark Vesey attended.

        

    The closing of his church is what prompted Vesey to action. He began holding meetings in his own home with former members of the congregation. Vesey read from the Bible frequently, and he used the Bible to encourage other blacks to join him in armed rebellion. He continually referred to the children of Israel being delivered from Egypt out of bondage, and felt that God would assist them as well. Vesey's plan was bold and complex. They planned to make their attack during the second week of July in 1822. They were to attack the city at seven different points. They were going to capture weapons at the arsenal, set fire to the city, and kill all whites they ran into. They would need a large number of blacks to assist, so they went about recruiting. They recruited as far away as 80 miles from Charleston. Hundreds of blacks from through out were contacted and the plan was set into motion and they began to prepare for their attack.

        

    Everything went according to schedule until late May when a slave reported to his master that he had been contacted by the group and they had tried to recruit him. The authorities began to investigate and more slaves came forward and told about Vesey's plans. The military was called in and many arrests were made. On June 17-18, ten slaves were captured, and then on June 22, Vesey was arrested. His trial was the next day. On the second day of July, 1822 Denmark Vesey and five others were hanged. In all over 30 blacks were hung, and many others were deported for their role in the planned revolt.

 

This was my website on Denmark Vesey. I hope you learned something from it. I had lots of fun researching. Well I hope you liked this website.