On this day in 1831, Nat Turner, a slave preacher in Southampton County, Virginia, initiated a rebellion in which groups of slaves went house to house in the area, liberating the enslaved and killing their masters.
Turner (1800 - 1831) was born and raised in Southampton County, Virginia, an area where black people outnumbered whites. He learned how to read and write at a young age and was deeply religious, eventually becoming an influential preacher in the area.
In early 1831, on the basis of religious visions, Nat Turner began preparing an insurrection. The rebellion began on August 21st, 1831, and rebels traveled from house to house, freeing slaves and killing many of the white people that they encountered.
At least 55 whites were killed, among them men, women, and children. The group spared a few homes "because Turner believed the poor white inhabitants 'thought no better of themselves than they did of negroes'", according to historian Stephen Oates.
The rebellion was put down by a combined force of local militia and three companies of artillery. The state executed 56 black people, and militias killed at least 100 more, some of whom were not involved in the rebellion.
Turner went on the run, eluding capture for six weeks. On October 30th, 1831, a white farmer discovered him hidden among the local Nottoway people in a depression in the earth, created by a large, fallen tree that was covered with fence rails.
After being tried and convicted for "conspiring to rebel and making insurrection", Turner was asked if he regretted what he had done. He responded "Was Christ not crucified?"
Turner was hanged by the government on November 11th, 1831. His body was dissected and flayed, with his bones and skin being used to create trophies and souvenirs such as purses.
After Turner's execution, state legislatures passed new laws prohibiting education of slaves and free black people, restricting rights of assembly and other civil liberties for free black people, and requiring white ministers to be present at all worship services.
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It’s honestly impressive how badly Game of Thrones fucked up the last season. It was so bad it poisoned the show entirely and it went immediately from possibly the most popular show out there to non-existent, and now they’re coming out with a prequel show and I don’t know anyone who cares at all.
Well put. I loved the show, followed every episode and follow-up lore content. And I hadn't even thought of it until recently, it dropped off my radar and I didn't even miss it because it the bad taste in my mouth from the last seasons
The only reason I’ve thought about it at all recently is because I’ve seen ads for the new show and gone “Huh, I don’t give a shit”
They really burned all their community goodwill
The showrunners had the makings of a cultural juggernaut like Harry Potter and instead torched it so they could go make a Star War. And the ending backlash was so great Disney dropped them.
I thought the trailer for the new show looked alright. D&D don't have anything to do with it at least.
idk how prestige TV can work so hard and spend so much money to be so consistently mediocre. It's got to be some kind of too many hands in one pot, and too many resources means they don't feel a need to be elegant.