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Difficulty: MediumMaroon Societies and Flight from Enslavement

Read the excerpt below from a Virginia colonial statute:

'Forasmuch as many negroes have lately been run away into the woods, swamps, and other obscure places, where they have built cabins and formed associations to defend themselves... if any negro or other slave shall run away, and lie out in the woods, swamps, or other obscure places, and shall resist any person or persons that shall be employed... to apprehend them, it shall be lawful for such persons to kill or destroy them...'
— Virginia House of Burgesses, Act II, 1672

Based on the excerpt, which of the following historical developments does this statute best illustrate?

  1. The formation of independent maroon communities in geographical refuges and the severe measures colonial authorities used to suppress them.Answer
  2. B
    The prevalence of everyday, covert resistance on plantations that colonial officials attempted to regulate through labor codes.
  3. C
    The reliance of enslaved individuals on temporary flight to negotiate labor conditions or visit family before returning to plantations.
  4. D
    The organization of large-scale military campaigns by self-liberated Africans designed to overthrow the entire colonial plantation economy.

Answer

The formation of independent maroon communities in geographical refuges and the severe measures colonial authorities used to suppress them.
The correct answer identifies that the statute describes activities characteristic of grand maroonage—building cabins and forming defensive groups in remote geographic refuges like swamps and woods. It also accurately highlights the severe legislative measures (legalizing the killing of runaways) that colonial authorities used to suppress these communities and prevent them from becoming permanent bases of resistance.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the actions of the runaways described in the 1672 statute.
The text notes that the runaways are building cabins and forming associations to defend themselves in remote areas like swamps and woods.
This indicates they are seeking to establish long-term, independent settlements outside colonial control.
2
Differentiate between forms of resistance.
The establishment of permanent, self-liberated communities is defined as grand maroonage (maroon societies). This is distinct from temporary escape (petit maroonage) and everyday plantation resistance.
Accurately identifying the scale and intent of the resistance helps select the correct historical concept.
3
Identify the colonial government's response.
The statute authorizes the killing or destruction of runaways who resist capture.
This shows the colonial state's anxiety regarding the threat of independent maroon bases and their willingness to use extreme violence to suppress them.

Key Concept

Maroon Societies and Flight from Enslavement
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Maroon Societies and Flight from Enslavement

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