By the late 1700s; half the free population of Saint Domingue was black. The French Caribbean colony offered a high degree of social; economic; and physical mobility to free people of color. Covering the period 1776-1791; this study offers the most comprehensive portrait to date of Saint Domingue’s free black elites on the eve of the colony's transformation into the republic of Haiti.Stewart R. King identifies two distinctive groups that shared Saint Domingue’s free black upper stratum; one consisting of planters and merchants and the other of members of the army and police forces. With the aid of individual and family case studies; King documents how the two groups used different strategies to pursue the common goal of economic and social advancement. Among other aspects; King looks at the rural or urban bases of these groups’ networks; their relationships with whites and free blacks of lesser means; and their attitudes toward the acquisition; use; and sale of land; slaves; and other property.King’s main source is the notarial archives of Saint Domingue; whose holdings offer an especially rich glimpse of free black elite life. Because elites were keenly aware of how a bureaucratic paper trail could help cement their status; the archives divulge a wealth of details on personal and public matters.Blue Coat or Powdered Wig is a vivid portrayal of race relations far from the European centers of colonial power; where the interactions of free blacks and whites were governed as much by practicalities and shared concerns as by the law.
#811802 in Books University of Georgia Press 1992-08-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.20 x 6.30 x 9.20l; 1.58 #File Name: 0820313939384 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy heyward gnannWell written and researched.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Help in understanding my ancestryBy Charles IrvinMy wife is addicted to tracing her's and my roots. The book gives her new information and a touch of the history about why and have how this group of people came to this country0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. German immigrants to Georgia during the colonial period.By Richard HinelyThis book does a great job of fleshing out the history of the German immigration to America during the colonial period. It explains why; how; and when they moved.
