Review--The Creole Affair: The Slave Rebellion That Led the U.S. and Great Britain to the Brink of War

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The Creole Affair: The Slave Rebellion That Led the U.S. and Great Britain to the Brink of WarThe Creole Affair: The Slave Rebellion That Led the U.S. and Great Britain to the Brink of War by Arthur T. Downey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent, well written history of a little remembered, but very important, incident that strained US/UK relations to the point of war.

Antebellum US was dealing with its "original sin", the slaves and slave states and territories of the Southern US. The British West Indies were emancipated by 1838, creating an opportunity for slaves to escape from the US to the islands, and that's exactly what the slaves aboard the US brig Creole did while they were being shipped to New Orleans.

The writing is clear and accessible to the armchair historian as well as the serious scholar, and the personalities are fascinating. I enjoyed it very much.


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