The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772–1832

Alan Taylor continues his impressive research and interpretation of American history with this work. The Internal Enemy won Taylor his second Pulitzer Prize in 2014. His first was for William Cooper’s Town: Power and Persuasion on the Frontier of the Early American Republic in 1996. Taylor earned his Ph.D in History at Brandeis University in 1986. Recently, he became the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation Professor of History at the University of Virginia. This was his eighth published work. In The Internal Enemy Taylor examines the role of slavery in Virginia from 1772 to 1832. Most of the book concentrates on the War of 1812 and how it impacted slavery. However, Taylor also shows that Virginia had firmly rejected the idea of emancipating its slaves long before this war. A great deal of confusion still exists about how the Founders viewed slavery and whether or not they thought it would die out. Taylor’s research validates many other historian’s interpretations which show that instead of slavery dying out, it was even more entrenched by 1812 than ever before. Any attempt to discuss ending slavery was met with derision and scorn, and failed to garner a modicum of support in Virginia’s state legislature. Taylor’s research shows that slavery was growing in this time period and that Virginians were already beginning to sell off excess slaves to buyers who were taking them south or southwest into the newer territories. He also shows how the events of the War of 1812 and how slavery was part of it began to expand the sectional divisions in the nation. Many historians have claimed that the War of 1812 unified the country, but a new generation of historians is rejecting that claim. Taylor’s work shows that slavery was the main wedge dividing the sections although it was not the only wedge. Crises such as the admission of Missouri as a state would continually occur and slavery was at the heart of every one of those crises. Works such as this are extremely important in understanding why events in the American past occurred as they did. This book also shows how the British viewed slavery and exploited it in order to inflict massive damage to the coastal area of Virginia. In addition, Taylor shows how the slaves themselves took matters into their own hands by escaping to British ships, and then returning to rescue their families from slavery with the help of the British. These were not a handful of slaves who were dragged off by the British nor were they sold in the West Indies as popular legend would have it. Taylor dispels those myths with ease using primary sources. The research in this work is impeccable. I highly recommend this book for those who want to learn more about the history of the Early Republic. So much from that time is utter myth and historians like Taylor are doing a great job uncovering the facts and presenting them to us. Taylor especially is good at this because he writes via a narrative method. He uses primary sources to construct his interpretations and has demonstrated a great deal of skill at writing for a larger audience instead of the formal academic prose which far too many historians still use. The result is Taylor’s works are read by more people. This is beginning to have an impact in American in my opinion as people are reading these works and discovering actual history instead of some cheap polemic garbage meant to persuade people for modern political ideologies.

New ideas about American history!

Turns out that the downside of owning slaves and slave society as a whole was a pervading terrifying ever-present fear of slave revolt and having your wife and children brutally murdered in their beds. An important part of masculinity is protecting our women-folk and our families. Imagine the Southern plantation-owner - you, your wife, your kids and extended-family. An overseer of two, no one else around for miles and miles except maybe hundreds of people whom you are keeping in bondage and degradation and who just may seize any opportunity to seek revenge - after all, they really don't have anything to lose, do they?This is a fascinating study of early 19th century society in Virginia and how this all-pervasive fear of what might happen permeated white society in the Tidewater and Piedmont slave-owning areas. Taylor pays particular attention to Virginia's role in the War of 1812 and how it was influenced by this fear. A major goal in the American side was the invasion of Canada. Except we didn't have a national standing army - we were dependent on the (2d Amendment-famous) well-regulated state militias - citizen-soldiers who were expected to leave their farms and answer the call to go off and fight in times of national emergencies. James Madison wanted to invade Canada? Turns out the militia from the largest and richest state in the Union couldn't contribute it's militia to fight for the common national goal - as soon as it's militia would leave to go invade Canada, the slaves would rise up and murder the women-folk and children in their beds. And it didn't help that the British had warships patrolling and raiding up and down Chesapeake Bay freeing slaves and encouraging slave revolts. I was never taught this part of history back in high school.This is an utterly fascinating book - very well written. Won the Pulitzer Prize. Recommended for anyone interested in Antebellum History.

Great book by one of America's leading historians. It relates the interesting fact that some of the British troops who burned the White House in the War of 1812 were freed slaves who had joined the British army.

Alan Taylor is a master at fully surveying a subject, digesting it and then presenting it clearly and directly in language that is a delight to read.

Found it hard going. To me didn't seem to flow in its narrative.

slavery has few defenders these days, but 200 years ago the story was very different: both the US and the UK supported the continuation of this "peculiar institution", each for its own peculiar reasons.