11. George Washington Demanded that the British Return Escaped Slaves
After the war ended in 1783, the fate of Black Loyalist escaped slaves became a bone of contention between the Patriots and British military commanders. The British were treaty-bound to deliver their black comrades in arms to their former masters, but the British on the ground refused to do so. In addition to basic decency and honor, the contest over the fate of the escaped slaves offered the British an opportunity to demonstrate moral superiority over the victorious Patriots. As the British commander in South Carolina put it: “those who have voluntarily come in under the faith of our protection, cannot in justice be abandoned to the merciless resentment of their former masters”.
The British commander in chief agreed, and directed that: “such that have been promised their freedom, to have it”. That incensed George Washington, one of whose slaves had fled and joined the British. It was in that context that many wondered whether hostilities would erupt anew over the issue. The British in New York finally resolved the issue, to the ire of the slave owners, by issuing thousands of “Certificates of Freedom” to Black Loyalists. The documents entitled bearers to decamp to British colonies such as Nova Scotia “or wherever else He/She may think proper”. In South Carolina, the British also honored their commitment to Black Loyalists, and took them with them when they left.
