"Bury the Chains" Chapter 7 Summary

Chapter 7 of Bury the Chains by Adam Hochschild is about the first emancipation of slaves that most people didn't know about, including the 12 men who met in a printing shop in 1787. In 1775, when the American Revolution was about to begin, Britain was desperate to cause trouble for the future Americans. So, they promised that any slave who joined the British army would be freed. When the fighting was over, no one knew what to do with the former slaves, who now lived in New York City. The Americans demanded them back, saying they were property seized by the British during the war. However, General Sir Guy Carleton had other plans. He refused George Washington's demands and didn't give the Americans their former slaves back. Instead, he shipped them to Nova Scotia, a British colony, including a young man named Boston King. This group of freed slaves was the largest group in one spot at the time.