Turner, Nat (1800–1831)

Leader of one of the bloodiest slave revolts in American history, Nat Turner was born a slave on October 2, 1800, in Southampton County, Virginia. He grew up on the farm of Benjamin Turner, becoming the property of Turner's brother Samuel upon Benjamin's death in 1810. Turner's mother, Nancy, was a native of North Africa who was sold into slavery and arrived in Virginia in 1795. She reputedly attempted to kill the infant Nat to keep him from a lifetime of servitude. Turner's father ran away when Nat was a child.

Turner's paternal grandmother, a slave named Bridget, schooled young Nat in the Scriptures. Turner was literate, and while Benjamin Turner was a Methodist who instructed his slaves in Christianity, it is not certain who taught him to read. Turner grew up to be devoutly religious, refusing to use tobacco or alcohol, and he began to experience visions in which he claimed to hear the voice of God. After one of these visions in 1821, Turner ran away for 30 days and returned, he said, at God's command. Sometime after his return, he married a slave named Cherry and had two or three children. When Samuel Turner died in 1822, Turner and Cherry were separated by sale, and Turner became the property of Thomas Moore. In 1825, Turner had another vision while at work in Moore's fields that prophesied a war between blacks and whites. Turner became an itinerant preacher after this vision and gained some renown. In 1827, he was credited with healing a white man named Etheldred Brantley of a mysterious disease, and the two men were baptized together. The next year, Turner had another vision that predicted the emancipation of the slaves.

Thomas Moore died in 1828, making Turner the property of his young son. Turner went to work on the farm of Joseph Travis in 1830 when Travis married Moore's widow. Turner's 1828 vision had instructed him to await a sign heralding the moment at which he should begin working to free the slaves. Turner believed that sign appeared in the form of a solar eclipse in February 1831, and he assembled four other slaves to plan a revolt for July 4. When the day arrived, Turner was ill, and the insurrection was postponed. After receiving another sign on August 13 in the blue-green tint of the sun, Turner and his conspirators gathered at Cabin Pond on the evening of August 21 and decided to attack that night.

At about 3 A.M. on August 22, Turner's rebels killed the entire Travis family as they slept. They continued on to other farms, killing all of the white people they could find, including women and children; pilfering guns and horses; and adding other slaves to their ranks. Turner eventually amassed between 60 and 80 rebels. Not all of them shared Turner's religious zeal. Some joined for the opportunity to exact revenge on their masters, others for the chance to loot for money and alcohol. In addition, not all slaves joined Turner's rebellion or even supported it. Several slaves tried to stop the rebels and later would testify against them in court.

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