1792-Aug.-25: The Royal Gazette published a notice regarding several runaway domestic slaves from Saint-Domingue who had disappeared into the urban undergrou…

1792-Aug.-25: The Royal Gazette published a notice regarding several runaway domestic slaves from Saint-Domingue who had disappeared into the urban underground of Kingston. These individuals were often described as bilingual or “French negroes,” and their presence in Jamaica was a source of constant concern for the authorities. The notice emphasized the danger of these runaways passing on revolutionary principles to the local enslaved population. The ability of these individuals to navigate the complex social landscape of a foreign port demonstrated the mobility of the Afro-Atlantic population. These “masterless” people were seen as the primary vectors for the spread of the Haitian Revolution’s ideals.