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The Amistad
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued February 22 – March 2, 1841
Decided March 9, 1841
Full case name: The United States, Appellants v. The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. The Libellants and Claimants of the schooner Amistad, her tackle, apparel, and furniture, together with her cargo, and the Africans mentioned and described in the several libels and claims, Appellees
Citations: 40 U.S. 518; 40 U. S. (15 Pet.) 518; 10 L. Richard Peters Jr ( August 17, 1780 – May 2, 1848) was the fourth reporter of decisions of the United States Supreme Court Ed. 826; 1841 U. S. LEXIS 279
Prior history: U.S. District Court for the Connecticut District rules for the "AFRICANS"; "UNITED STATES" appeals to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Connecticut District, lower court affirmed; UNITED STATES appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court, certiorari granted
Subsequent history: “AFRICANS” returned to Africa not by way of the President, but by way of abolitionists; U.S. Circuit Court for the Connecticut District dispenses monetary awards mandated by the Supreme Court; U.S. Circuit Court for the Connecticut District hears a petition by Ramon Bermejo, in 1845, for the unclaimed monetary sum retained by the court in 1841; petition granted in the amount of $631
Holding
The “AFRICANS” are free, and are remanded to be released; Lt. The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Abolitionism was a political movement of the 18th and 19th century which sought to make Slavery illegal particularly in the United States and British West Indies The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Gedney’s claims of salvage are granted, remanded to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Connecticut District for further proceedings in monetary manners. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals.
Court membership
Chief Justice: Roger B. Taney
Associate Justices: Joseph Story, Smith Thompson, John McLean, Henry Baldwin, James Moore Wayne, Philip Pendleton Barbour, John Catron, John McKinley
Case opinions
Majority by: Story
Joined by: Taney, Thompson, McLean, Wayne, Catron, McKinley
Dissent by: Baldwin
Barbour took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. Roger Brooke Taney ( "tawny" March 17, 1777 – October 12, 1864) was the twelfth United States Attorney General Joseph Story ( September 18, 1779 &ndash September 10, 1845) was an American Lawyer and Jurist who served on Smith Thompson ( January 17, 1768 New York City - December 18, 1843) was a United States Secretary of the Navy and John McLean (March 11 1785 &ndash April 4 1861 was an American Jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U Henry Baldwin ( January 14, 1780 - April 21, 1844) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from James Moore Wayne (1790 &ndash July 5, 1867) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and was a United States Representative Philip Pendleton Barbour ( May 25, 1783 &ndash February 25, 1841) was a U John Catron ( January 7, 1786 &ndash May 30, 1865) was an American Jurist who served as a Supreme Court justice John McKinley ( May 1, 1780 &ndash July 19, 1852) was a US senator from the state of Alabama and an associate
Laws applied
Pinckney's Treaty, art. Pinckney's Treaty, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo or the Treaty of Madrid, was signed in San Lorenzo de El Escorial on October 27, IX; Adams-Onís Treaty
Part of a series of articles on. The Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819 settled a border dispute in North America between the United States and Spain. . .
Image:Slave revolt logo.jpg

1712 New York Slave Revolt
1739 Stono Rebellion
1741 New York Slave Conspiracy (Suppressed)
1791-1804 Haitian Revolution
1800 Gabriel Prosser (Suppressed)
1805 Chatham Manor
1811 Charles Deslondes (Suppressed)
1815 George Boxley (Suppressed)
1822 Denmark Vesey (Suppressed)
1831 Nat Turner's rebellion
1839 Amistad
1856 Pottawatomie Massacre
1859 John Brown

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The Amistad, 40 U.S. (15 Pet.) 518 (1841), was a United States Supreme Court case resulting from the rebellion of slaves on board the Spanish schooner Amistad in 1839. The Stono Rebellion (sometimes called Cato's Conspiracy or Cato's Rebellion) is one of the earliest known organized acts of rebellion against slavery within the The Revolution (1791–1804 was the most successful of African Slave rebellions in the Western Hemisphere Gabriel (1776&ndash October 10, 1800) today commonly if incorrectly known as Gabriel Prosser, was a skilled and literate enslaved blacksmith Chatham Manor is the Georgian-style home built between 1768 and 1771 by William Fitzhugh on the Rappahannock River in Stafford County Virginia Charles Deslondes led a slave revolt in parts of the Louisiana Territory on January 8, 1811. George Boxley was a white storekeeper who while living in Spotsylvania Virginia, allegedly tried to coordinate a local slave rebellion on March 6, 1815 Denmark Vesey (originally Telemaque,1767? &ndash July 2, 1822) was a West Indian slave brought to the United States Nat Turner's Rebellion (also known as the Southampton Insurrection) was a Slave rebellion that took place in Southampton County, Virginia during The Pottawatomie Massacre occurred during the night of May 24 and the morning of May 25, 1856. John Brown (May 9 1800 December 2 1859 was an American Abolitionist who advocated and practiced armed Insurrection as a means to end all Slavery Case citation is the system used in many countries to identify the decisions in past Court cases either in special series of books called reporters The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. A schooner (ˈskuːnɚ is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts Schooners were first used by the La Amistad ( Spanish: "Friendship" was a 19th-century two- masted Schooner built in the United States but owned by a Spaniard

The rebellion broke out when the schooner, traveling along the coast of Cuba, was taken over by a group of captives who had earlier been kidnapped in Africa and sold into slavery. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la The Africans were later apprehended on the vessel near Long Island, New York by the United States Navy and taken into custody. Long Island is an island located in southeastern New York, USA, its western shores directly across from Manhattan, from which the island stretches The ensuing widely publicized court cases in the United States helped the abolitionist movement. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Abolitionism was a political movement of the 18th and 19th century which sought to make Slavery illegal particularly in the United States and British West Indies In 1840, a federal trial court found that the initial transport of the Africans across the Atlantic (which did not involve the Amistad) had been illegal and that they were not legally slaves but free. The Supreme Court affirmed this finding on March 9, 1841, and the Africans traveled home in 1842. Events 590 - Bahram Chobin is crowned as king Barham VI of Persia. For the game see 1841 (board game. Year 1841 ( MDCCCXLI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link Some of the laws that were written because of the Amistad and before the Amistad are: Slaves were legally recognized as property in Connecticut until 1848; It had been illegal to import slaves into United States since 1808; The United States had a treaty with Spain (Pinckney's Treaty of 1795) that stated if a vessel of either nation was forced to enter the other's ports, that ship would be released immediately; Spain outlawed slavery; Spanish law made it legal to keep slaves if they were born before 1820; Ships and property found helpless at sea were subject to claims (salvage rights) made by those who rescued them.

Contents

Rebellion at sea, and capture

On June 27, 1839, La Amistad ("Friendship"), a Spanish vessel, left from the port of Havana, Cuba destined for Puerto Principe, also in Cuba (which was then a Spanish colony). Events 1358 - Republic of Dubrovnik is founded 1709 - Peter the Great defeats Charles XII of Sweden Year 1839 ( MDCCCXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common La Amistad ( Spanish: "Friendship" was a 19th-century two- masted Schooner built in the United States but owned by a Spaniard Havana ( IPA: aˈβana officially Ciudad de La Habana, is the Capital city, major port and leading Camagüey is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third largest city The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la This article is about a type of political territory For other uses see Colony (disambiguation. The masters of La Amistad were the captain Ramón Ferrer, José Ruiz, and Pedro Montez, all of Spanish origin. With Ferrer was his personal slave Antonio. Ruiz had with him 49 African slaves, entrusted to him by the Governor-General of Cuba. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Montez had with him four additional African slaves, also entrusted to him by the Governor-General of Cuba. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la [1] On July 2, 1839, one of the Africans, Cinqué (who was also called Sengbe Pieh), managed to free himself and the other captives using a metal spike that he had found. Events 310 - Pope Miltiades is elected 626 - In fear of assassination Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival Year 1839 ( MDCCCXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Sengbe Pieh (1813 &ndash ca 1879 later known as Joseph Cinqué, was a West African man of the Mende ethnic group and was the most prominent defendant They killed the ship's cook, Celestino, and the captain in a struggle that also killed two of the rebelling slaves. Two sailors escaped in a lifeboat. The slaves spared the lives of the two purported slave owners, José Ruiz and Pedro Montez, upon the understanding that they would return the ship to Africa. They also spared the captain's personal slave.

However, the navigator deceived the Africans and steered the Amistad north along the coast of the United States where the ship was sighted repeatedly. They dropped anchor half a mile off Long Island, New York, on August 26, 1839, at Culloden Point. Events 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert. Year 1839 ( MDCCCXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Culloden Point is a small Peninsula north of Montauk New York that that marks the east side entrance to Fort Pond Bay off Long Island Sound. Some of the Africans went on shore to procure water and provisions from the hamlet of Montauk, New York, and the vessel was subsequently discovered by the United States naval brig USS Washington. Montauk is a hamlet (and Census-designated place) in Suffolk County, New York on the South Shore of Long Island. Lieutenant Thomas R. Gedney, [2] commanding the Washington, observed some of the slaves on shore and, assisted by his officers and crew, took custody of the Amistad and the rebel slaves. He subsequently took them to the state of Connecticut and presented a written claim under admiralty law for salvage of the vessel, the cargo, and the Africans. Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. Admiralty law (also referred to as maritime law) is a distinct body of Law which governs maritime questions and offenses Gedney allegedly chose to land in Connecticut because, unlike in New York, slavery was still technically legal there, and he hoped to profit from the slaves. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous

Gedney then relinquished all captured slaves into the custody of the U.S. District Court for the Connecticut District, at which time proceedings began. The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. [1]

Parties

Lower Court proceedings

A case before the Circuit Court in Hartford, Connecticut, was filed in September 1839, alleging mutiny and murder. The United States circuit courts were the original intermediate level courts of the United States federal court system. Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly-situated individuals (typically members of the Military; or the Crew of any ship even Murder is the unlawful killing of another human person with Malice aforethought, as defined in Common Law countries The court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction, because the alleged acts took place on a Spanish ship in Spanish waters. In Law, jurisdiction (from the Latin ius iuris meaning "law" and dicere meaning "to speak" is the practical Authority

Various parties then filed property claims to the slaves, to the ship and to its cargo before the lower District Court: Ruiz and Montez, Lieutenant Gedney and Captain Henry Green (who had met the Africans while on shore on Long Island and claimed to have helped in their capture). The United States district courts are the general Trial courts of the United States federal court system. The Spanish government asked that the ship, cargo and slaves be restored to Spain under the Pinckney treaty of 1795 between Spain and the United States. Pinckney's Treaty, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo or the Treaty of Madrid, was signed in San Lorenzo de El Escorial on October 27, Article 9 of this treaty holds that "all ships and merchandises of what nature soever, which shall be rescued out of the hands of pirates or robbers on the high seas, …shall be restored, entire, to the true proprietor. " The United States filed this claim on behalf of Spain.

The abolitionist movement had formed the "Amistad Committee", headed by New York City merchant Lewis Tappan, and had collected money to mount a defense of the Africans. Abolitionism was a political movement of the 18th and 19th century which sought to make Slavery illegal particularly in the United States and British West Indies The City of New York Merchants function as professionals who deal with Trade, dealing in commodities that they do not produce themselves in order to produce Profit. Lewis Tappan (1788 - 1873 was a New York Abolitionist who was most responsible in making sure the Africans of the Amistad had their freedom Initially, communication with the Africans was difficult, since they did not speak English or Spanish. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Professor Willard Gibbs learned to count to ten in their native Mende language, went to the harbor of New York City, and counted out loud until he located a person able to understand and translate. Josiah Willard Gibbs Sr ( 30 April 1790 - 24 March 1861) was a professor of Theology and sacred literature at Yale University Mende ( Mɛnde yia) is a major language of Sierra Leone, with some speakers in neighboring Liberia. That person was James Covey, a twenty-year-old sailor of the British man-of-war Buzzard. James Covey is the English name of the interpreter chosen for the Amistad slave ship case (40 U Covey was himself a former slave from West Africa.

The abolitionists filed charges of assault, kidnapping, and false imprisonment against Ruiz and Montez. Assault is a Crime of Violence against another person. In some Jurisdictions including Australia and New Zealand, In Criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or Asportation of a person against the person's will usually to hold the person in False imprisonment False imprisonment is a Tort, and possibly a Crime, wherein a person is intentionally confined without legal authority Their arrest in New York City in October 1839 outraged pro-slavery rights advocates and the Spanish government. They were eventually released on bail and left for Cuba.

On January 7, 1840, all the parties (except for Ruiz and Montez, who were represented by the Spanish minister) appeared before the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut and presented their arguments. Events 1325 - Alfonso IV becomes King of Portugal. 1558 - France takes Calais, the last continental Year 1840 ( MDCCCXL) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. [6]

The abolitionists' main argument before the District Court was that a treaty between Britain and Spain of 1817 and a subsequent pronouncement by the Spanish government had outlawed the slave trade across the Atlantic. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located It was established that the slaves had been captured in Mendiland (also Mendeland, current Sierra Leone) in Africa, sold to a Portuguese trader in Lomboko (south of Freetown) in April 1839, and taken to Havana illegally on a Portuguese ship. Mendiland is the extreme southwest portion of Sierra Leone on the western coast of Africa, where the Mende tribe lives and the Mende language Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Lomboko apparently refers to a stockaded compound created by the infamous Spanish trader Pedro Blanco. Freetown is the Capital and largest City of Sierra Leone, and a major Port on the Atlantic Ocean. The Africans were therefore not slaves, but victims of illegal kidnapping and free to go. Their papers wrongly identified them as slaves that had been in Cuba since before 1820, a common practice in Cuba condoned by government officials.

U. S. President Martin Van Buren, who did not have strong opinions on the slavery question but was concerned about relations with Spain and about his re-election prospects in the southern states, sided with the Spanish position; he ordered a U. Martin Van Buren (December 5 1782 July 24 1862 was the eighth President of the United States from 1837 to 1841 S. schooner to New Haven Harbor to return the Africans to Cuba immediately after a favorable decision, before any appeals could be decided. New Haven Harbor is an inlet on the north side of Long Island Sound in the state of Connecticut in the United States.

The District Court however agreed with the abolitionists, ordering in January 1840 that the Amistad and its cargo be given to Lieutenant Gedney and the Africans be returned to their homeland by the U. S. government. (The federal government had outlawed the slave trade between the U. S. and other countries in 1808, and a law from 1818, amended in 1819, provided for the return of all illegally traded slaves. ) The captain's slave was declared the rightful property of the captain's heirs and was ordered restored to Cuba (he escaped to Canada). Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page In detail, the District Court ruled as follows:

The U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut, on order of Van Buren, immediately appealed to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Connecticut District (today known as the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit). United States Attorneys (also known as federal prosecutors) represent the United States federal government in United States district court and The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. The United States circuit courts were the original intermediate level courts of the United States federal court system. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. He challenged every part of the District Court's ruling except the concession of the slave Antonio to the Spanish vice-consul. Tellincas, Aspe, and Laca also appealed the denial of their salvage. Ruiz and Montez, as well as the owners of La Amistad, did not appeal. [6]

This court affirmed (upheld) the District Court's decision in April 1840. [6] From there, the U. S. Attorney appealed to the United States Supreme Court and the Court granted writ of error. [6]

Arguments before the Supreme Court

On February 23, 1841 Attorney General Henry D. Gilpin began the oral argument phase before the Supreme Court. Events 1455 - Traditional date for the publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western Book printed from Movable For the game see 1841 (board game. Year 1841 ( MDCCCXLI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link In most Common law jurisdictions the Attorney General, or Attorney-General, is the main legal advisor to the government and in some jurisdictions may in addition Henry Dilworth Gilpin ( April 14, 1801 &ndash January 29, 1860) was an American lawyer and statesman of Quaker extraction Gilpin first entered into evidence the papers of La Amistad which stated that the Africans were Spanish property. The documents being in order, Gilpin argued that the Court had no authority to rule against their validity. Gilpin contended that if the Africans were slaves (as evidenced by the documents), then they must be returned to their rightful owner, in this case, the Spanish government. Gilpin's argument lasted two hours. [7]

John Quincy Adams, former President of the United States and at that time a Congressman from Massachusetts in the House of Representatives, had agreed to argue for the Africans, but when it was time for him to argue, felt ill-prepared. John Quincy Adams (July 11 1767 &ndash February 23 1848 was an American diplomat and politician who served as the sixth President of the United States The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. Roger Sherman Baldwin, who had already represented the slaves in the lower cases, opened in his place. Roger Sherman Baldwin ( January 4, 1793 &ndash February 19, 1863) was an American Lawyer involved in the Amistad [7]

Baldwin, a prominent attorney (who was no relation to Justice Baldwin, the lone dissenter on the Court) contended that the Spanish government was attempting to manipulate the Court to return "fugitives". Henry Baldwin ( January 14, 1780 - April 21, 1844) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from Custody, whether it be from private Slavery, a government Arrest, government or non-government questioning In actuality, Baldwin argued, the Spanish government sought the return of slaves, who had been freed by the District Court, a fact that the Spanish government was not appealing. Covering all the facts of the case, Baldwin spoke for four hours over the course of the 22nd and the 23rd. [7]

John Quincy Adams rose to speak on February 24. Events 303 - Galerius, Roman Emperor, publishes his edict that begins the persecution of Christians in his portion of the First, he reminded the court that it was a part of the judicial branch, and not part of the executive. In Law, the judiciary or judicial system is the system of Courts which administer Justice in the name of the sovereign or State In Political science and Constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the State. Adams introduced correspondence between the Spanish government and the Secretary of State, criticizing President Martin van Buren for his assumption of unconstitutional powers in the case. Secretary of State is a commonly used title for a Government Official. Martin Van Buren (December 5 1782 July 24 1862 was the eighth President of the United States from 1837 to 1841 Constitutionality is the status of a law, a procedure or an act's accordance with the laws or guidelines set forth in the applicable Constitution. [7]

This review of all the proceedings of the Executive I have made with utmost pain, because it was necessary to bring it fully before your Honors, to show that the course of that department had been dictated, throughout, not by justice but by sympathy — and a sympathy the most partial and injust. And this sympathy prevailed to such a degree, among all the persons concerned in this business, as to have perverted their minds with regard to all the most sacred principles of law and right, on which the liberties of the United States are founded; and a course was pursued, from the beginning to the end, which was not only an outrage upon the persons whose lives and liberties were at stake, but hostile to the power and independence of the judiciary itself. [7]

Adams argued that neither Pinckney's Treaty nor the Adams-Onís Treaty was applicable to the case. Pinckney's Treaty, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo or the Treaty of Madrid, was signed in San Lorenzo de El Escorial on October 27, The Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819 settled a border dispute in North America between the United States and Spain. Article IX of Pinckney's Treaty referred only to property, and did not apply to people. The Antelope decision (10 Wheat. 124), which recognized "that possession on board of a vessel was evidence of property",[8] Adams said that did not apply either, since the precedent there was established prior to the prohibition of the foreign slave trade in the United States. Case citation is the system used in many countries to identify the decisions in past Court cases either in special series of books called reporters Adams concluded after eight and one-half hours of speaking on March 1 (the Court had taken a recess following the death of Associate Justice Barbour). Events 86 BC - Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a Roman Republic army enters in Athens, removing the Tyrant Associate Justice or Associate Judge is the title for a member of a judicial panel who is not the Chief Justice. Philip Pendleton Barbour ( May 25, 1783 &ndash February 25, 1841) was a U [7]

Attorney General Gilpin concluded oral arguments with a three-hour rebuttal on March 2. Events 986 - Louis V becomes King of the Franks. 1127 - Assassination of Charles the Good [7]

Decision of the Supreme Court

On March 9, Associate Justice Joseph Story delivered the Court's decision. Events 590 - Bahram Chobin is crowned as king Barham VI of Persia. Joseph Story ( September 18, 1779 &ndash September 10, 1845) was an American Lawyer and Jurist who served on Article IX of Pinckney's Treaty was ruled off topic since the Africans in question were never legal property. Pinckney's Treaty, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo or the Treaty of Madrid, was signed in San Lorenzo de El Escorial on October 27, They were not criminals, as the U. S. Attorney's Office argued, but, rather, "unlawfully kidnapped, and forcibly and wrongfully carried on board a certain vessel". [9] The documents submitted by Attorney General Gilpin were not evidence of property, but, rather of fraud on the part of the Spanish government. Lt. Gedney and the USS Washington were to be awarded salvage from the vessel for having performed "a highly meritorious and useful service to the proprietors of the ship and cargo". [10]

When La Amistad came into Long Island, however, the Court believed it to be in the possession of the Africans on board, who had no intent to become slaves. Therefore, the Adams-Onís Treaty did not apply, and the President was not required to return the slaves to Africa. The Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819 settled a border dispute in North America between the United States and Spain. [7]

“ Upon the whole, our opinion is, that the decree of the circuit court, affirming that of the district court, ought to be affirmed, except so far as it directs the negroes to be delivered to the president, to be transported to Africa, in pursuance of the act of the 3rd of March 1819; and as to this, it ought to be reversed: and that the said negroes be declared to be free, and be dismissed from the custody of the court, and go without delay. [10] ”

After the trial

The Mende greeted the news of the Supreme Court's decision with joy. Free at last, the survivors — 35 men and boys and three girls — were brought to Farmington, Connecticut by abolitionist supporters, a village considered "Grand Central Station" on the Underground Railroad. Farmington is a town located in Hartford County in central Connecticut in the United States. The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and Safe houses used by 19th century Black slaves in the United States Charles Ledyard Norton was a child in Farmington at the time and he wrote of the arrival of the Mende in his journal:

“ Barracks were erected and here the former captives made their home. Cinque was a born ruler. Ably seconded by his lieutenant, Grabeau, he maintained a very creditable degree of discipline among his followers. They were, for the most part, free to roam about, except for regular school hours, and townsfolk soon ceased to fear them. Anxious mamas at first trembled and kept their children behind bolted doors, but before long it was no uncommon sight to see the big grown-up blacks playing with little white children in village dooryards. ”

The Amistad committee continued to instruct the Africans in English and Christianity and collected donations to pay for their return. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Along with several missionaries, the surviving 36 Africans travelled back to Africa early in 1842, and a mission was erected in Mendiland. Mendiland is the extreme southwest portion of Sierra Leone on the western coast of Africa, where the Mende tribe lives and the Mende language The Amistad committee later evolved into the American Missionary Association, an evangelical organization which continued to support the Mendi mission, argued for abolitionism, and eventually established many schools for freed slaves in the U. The American Missionary Association was a Protestant -based Abolitionist group founded on September 3, 1846. S.

In the following years, the Spanish government continued to press for compensation, and several lawmakers from southern states introduced resolutions into the United States Congress to pay. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses These efforts were supported by presidents James K. Polk and James Buchanan, but they all failed. James Knox Polk ( November 2 1795&ndashJune 15 1849 was the eleventh President of the United States, serving from March 4 1845 to March 4 1849 James Buchanan Jr (April 23 1791 – June 1 1868 was the fifteenth President of the United States (1857–1861

After he returned to Africa, Cinqué renounced Christianity and ceased to have much contact with the American Missionary Association (AMA), the organization that had facilitated his return to Africa. Rumors spread: He was rich; he was a slave trader; he went to Jamaica. One scholar found that "numerous such oral accounts" of Cinqué being involved in slavery and the African trade "had reached the Mende mission. " The same claim was made by Fred L. Brownlee, the AMA historian, but solid documentation is lacking. [11]

The United States faced an incident similar to the Amistad case in the Creole case of 1841. The Creole case was an incident in American history concerning the Coastwise slave trade, which flourished for a half century or longer

Legacy

A simplified version of the events described here was made into a movie called Amistad in 1997. Amistad is a 1997 Steven Spielberg Film based on the true story of a slave mutiny that took place aboard a ship of the same name in It was directed by Steven Spielberg and starred Anthony Hopkins as John Quincy Adams, Morgan Freeman as one of the abolitionists, Djimon Hounsou as Cinqué, and Matthew McConaughey as Roger Sherman Baldwin, their lawyer. Steven Allan Spielberg, KBE (Hon (born December 18 1946 is an American Film director, Screenwriter and producer. Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, CBE (born 31 December 1937 is a Welsh Film, stage and Television Actor. Morgan Porterfield Freeman Jr (born June 1 1937 is an Academy Award -winning American actor Film director and Narrator. Djimon Gaston Hounsou (born April 24, 1964) is a two-time Academy Award -nominated Beninois Actor. Matthew David McConaughey (məˈkɑnəˌheɪ born November 4 1969 is an American Actor. Roger Sherman Baldwin ( January 4, 1793 &ndash February 19, 1863) was an American Lawyer involved in the Amistad A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law as an attorney, Counsel or Solicitor; a person This film also depicts the initial transport of the slaves from Africa to Cuba, showing brutal murders, death by starvation and suffocation, and drowning of slaves.

There is a statue of Cinqué beside the City Hall building in New Haven, Connecticut. In March 2000, a replica of the Amistad was launched from Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Connecticut. A ship replica is a reconstruction of a no longer existing ship Mystic Seaport: The Museum of America and the Sea is a Living history Maritime museum situated along the banks of the Mystic River in Mystic Connecticut Mystic is a Census-designated place (CDP in New London County, Connecticut, in the United States. Its mission is to educate the public on the history of slavery, discrimination and civil rights. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another Unlike most discrimination policies discrimination between, which is the discernment of qualities and recognition of the differences focused here discrimination against is The vessel is currently homeported in New Haven, Connecticut, where the Amistad Trial occurred. It also travels to port cities for educational opportunities. The official name of the vessel is the Freedom Schooner Amistad.

The Historical Society of Farmington Connecticut offers walking tours of village homes that once housed the Africans while funds were collected for their return home, as well as the grave stone of Foone, who drowned in the Farmington River. Similarly, the Oberlin Heritage Center (Oberlin, Ohio) provides tours of the one-room schoolhouse where one of the Amistad captives (Sarah Margru Kinson) studied, beginning in August 1846, at the suggestion of abolitionist Lewis Tappan. Oberlin is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, to the south and west of Cleveland.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e 40 U.S. 518 at 587-8
  2. ^ The U.S. Navy and the Amistad. This is a list of all the United States Supreme Court cases from volume 40 Amistad is a 1997 Steven Spielberg Film based on the true story of a slave mutiny that took place aboard a ship of the same name in AfricanAmericans. com. Americans. net. Retrieved on 2007-05-20. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 325 - The First Council of Nicaea &ndash the first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church is held
  3. ^ Id. at 588-589
  4. ^ a b Id. at 589
  5. ^ Id. at 589-590
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Id. at 590
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Clifton Johnson, "The Amistad Case and Its Consequences in U.S. History"
  8. ^ Supra note 1 at 545
  9. ^ Id. at 588
  10. ^ a b Id. at 597
  11. ^ Paul Finkelman, "On Cinqué and the Historians," Journal of American History, 87#3 (Dec 2000)

External links

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