Denmark Vesey

Much is already known about Denmark Vesey, who purchased his freedom from slavery in 1800 with money he won in a lottery. Yet his apparently sudden transformation from successful free black carpenter and property owner to the organizer of ""the most elaborate and well-planned slave insurrection in U.S. history,"" in 1822, still fuels lingering curiosity. Evoking the atmosphere of material wealth enjoyed by antebellum South Carolina whites, Robertson reveals their fear at being surrounded by a black slave population whose labor made their comfort possible but who outnumbered them four to one. Drawing on the correspondence and memoirs of whites and their descendants--but not of blacks--Robertson addresses his central question: ""Why were individual freedom and prosperity not enough for Denmark Vesey?"" The author's answer, which links Vesey's dissatisfaction (and that of the thousands of slaves who were reputedly ready to join him in arms) to the spiritual autonomy he achieved through the African Methodist Episcopal Church, is persuasive. Furthermore, Robertson identifies Vesey as a spiritual and political leader whose views were a precursor to modern Black Theology. Based on the word of a slave informant, Vesey and more than 20 slaves were hanged as insurrectionists in the summer of 1822, despite little physical evidence. Robertson's well-researched narrative and smooth style make this an intellilgent analysis of, as well as a worthy tribute to, his subject. Photos not seen by PW. (Aug.)