1788–1789: (The Rise of Abolitionist Sentiment and Political Conflict): While the French National Assembly was being formed, a profound grievance emerged as …

1788–1789: (The Rise of Abolitionist Sentiment and Political Conflict): While the French National Assembly was being formed, a profound grievance emerged as the notion of African slavery became revolting to intellectuals in both France and England. In 1788, the Société des Amis des Noirs was founded in France by men like Condorcet, La Fayette, and Mirabeau, who demanded an end to both the slave trade and slavery itself. They were influenced by free mulâtres from Saint-Domingue, including Vincent Ogé and Jean-Baptiste Chavannes, who sought to reclaim the rights originally granted under the Code Noir. Bitterly opposing them was the Club Massiac, a party of former colonists and absentee proprietors determined to protect their economic existence. Ten days before the Bastille fell in July 1789, the French National Assembly voted to seat six delegates from Saint-Domingue, though Mirabeau questioned why only white colonists were represented.