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Difficulty: EasyShipboard Rebellions and Middle Passage Resistance

Read the excerpt from a 1721 newspaper report about the ship *Robert* and answer the question below.

'We have an account that the captives on board the ship *Robert*... whilst in the mouth of the Sierra Leone River, rose upon the ship’s company. They killed the boatswain and several crew members before being subdued by the captain's force...'

Which of the following statements is best supported by the excerpt?

  1. A
    Captives relied almost exclusively on covert, non-violent methods of resistance rather than attempting open mutinies.
  2. Enslaved Africans actively resisted their captivity through organized uprisings even before the trans-Atlantic voyage began.Answer
  3. C
    Rebellions aboard slave ships were rare events that only occurred after the vessels arrived in American ports.
  4. D
    Captives did not initiate rebellions themselves but instead waited for external abolitionist raids to free them.

Answer

Enslaved Africans actively resisted their captivity through organized uprisings even before the trans-Atlantic voyage began.
The correct option is supported because the excerpt describes captives launching a violent uprising on the ship *Robert* while still located in the Sierra Leone River, demonstrating active resistance to enslavement before the Middle Passage voyage had even commenced.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus to determine the location and nature of the event.
The event is a violent uprising ('rose upon the ship's company') occurring at the 'mouth of the Sierra Leone River' in Africa.
Identifying the geographic context and actions of the captives is necessary to evaluate the statements.
2
Evaluate each option against the evidence in the stimulus.
The statement about active resistance before the trans-Atlantic voyage is directly supported, while the others contradict the active, violent, and early nature of the rebellion.
This step determines the correct historical conclusion supported by the primary source.

Key Concept

Shipboard Rebellions and Middle Passage Resistance
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Topics

Shipboard Rebellions and Middle Passage Resistance

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