1792-Aug.-04: The Royal Gazette in Jamaica recorded the arrival of several “French negroes” from Saint-Domingue, sparking immediate security concerns among t…

1792-Aug.-04: The Royal Gazette in Jamaica recorded the arrival of several “French negroes” from Saint-Domingue, sparking immediate security concerns among the island’s white inhabitants. Julius S. Scott explains that these arrivals often consisted of people who had escaped slavery or domestic servants fleeing the escalating violence of the Haitian Revolution. The Jamaican government feared that these individuals would act as “apostles of sedition,” spreading news of the successful insurrections of the enslaved to the local population. Strict laws were soon enacted to register and monitor any persons of color arriving from foreign colonies. This entry highlights the defensive posture of British authorities as they attempted to insulate their colonies from revolutionary contagion.