Instead, they postulate that Spanish forces to the north may have incited the insurrection, with the hopes that this would distract or weaken the United State’s efforts to annex West Florida. Where many historians have seen the sporadic movements of this group over a multi-day period as the signs of a disorganized riotous group, they see a group in search of a cache of weapons, which they had assumed would be available to slave holders that served as leaders of the local militia.

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However, their inability to locate this armory quickly ended up being their demise. The elite of the German Coast made pleas to the government in New Orleans, adding that if they didn’t act quickly these revolutionaries would be set loose upon the city. The territorial government responded by sending in federal troops, ultimately trapping them between federal and militia forces.

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I think the compelling aspect of this alternative narrative is it’s attempt to break away from the vantage point of the victors.

Would a group of people who had no significant advantage in weapons or numbers really attempt to attack a seat of power? Or is there more to this story?

It seems impossible these 212 years later to have much certainty, but it feels important to me that we question our #history, so we might understand what motivations are behind traditional narratives.
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