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What role did religion play in Nat Turner's revolt?

The worst fears and nightmares of the white Southerners became a reality in August of 1831. They had tried to prevent this moment for decades through such methods as prohibiting slaves from learning to read and write. Through their efforts at controlling the slaves, they introduced thousands of Africans to the religion of Christianity. This proved to be a mistake for them in 1831. It was in this year that Nat Turner, a slave in...

The worst fears and nightmares of the white Southerners became a reality in August of 1831. They had tried to prevent this moment for decades through such methods as prohibiting slaves from learning to read and write. Through their efforts at controlling the slaves, they introduced thousands of Africans to the religion of Christianity. This proved to be a mistake for them in 1831. It was in this year that Nat Turner, a slave in Virginia, led the bloodiest slave revolt in American history.


Religion, namely Christianity was an important catalyst for this slave insurrection. Nat Turner was a very popular evangelist among the slave population. He was convinced that God chose him to lead his people to freedom in the same way that Moses led his people out of Egypt. It is quite possible that Nat Turner did not speak directly to God and this was a figment of his imagination. Regardless of the validity of the revelations, Nat Turner's faith was an important impetus for organizing the slave revolt.  In general, Christianity was an important factor in the abolitionist crusade as well as most of the slave revolts that took place.  



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