Prince Among SlavesOverview: In this remarkable work, Terry Alford tells the story of Abd al Rahman Ibrahima, a Muslim slave who, in 1807, was recognized by an Irish ship's surgeon as the son of an African king who had saved his life many years earlier. "The Prince," as he had become known to local Natchez, Mississippi residents, had been captured in war when he was 26 years old, sold to slave traders, and shipped to America. Slave though he was, Ibrahima was an educated, aristocratic man, and he was made overseer of the large cotton and tobacco plantation of his master, who refused to sell him to the doctor for any price. After years of petitioning by Dr. Cox and others, Ibrahima finally gained freedom in 1828 through the intercession of U.S. Secretary of State Henry Clay. Sixty-six years old, Ibrahima sailed for Africa the following year, with his wife, and died there of fever just five months after his arrival. The year 2007 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the publication of Prince Among Slaves, the only full account of Ibrahima's life, pieced together from first-person accounts and historical documents gathered on three continents. It is not only a remarkable story, but also the story of a remarkable man, who endured the humiliation of slavery without ever losing his dignity or his hope for freedom. This thirtieth anniversary edition, which will be released to coincide with a major documentary being aired on Ibrahima's life, has been updated to include material discovered since the original printing, a fuller presentation and appreciation of other African Muslims in American slavery-Ibrahima's contemporaries-and a review of new and important literature and developments in the field. This is the true story of an African prince sold into slavery in the American South. |
Contents
Across the Broad Casamance 20 | 20 |
A Common Slave | 39 |
Annus Mirabilis and After | 66 |
Unbroken in Body and Mind | 85 |
Notes | 197 |
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Common terms and phrases
Abduhl ACS-DLC Adams County Advertiser African almaami American Andrew Marschalk appeared April arrived Baltimore Boston Christian Church cited Clay colonel Colonization Society colony cotton Cyrus Cyrus Griffin deed-book Diallo dollars Ephraim Foster father Foster Fields Freedom's Journal Fulbe Futa Gallaudet Gambia Gazette Griffin to Gurley Guébhard Gurley Heatley Hebohs hima History hundred ibid Ibra Ibrahima Irwin Islam Jackson Jalunke James John Journal July June Karamoko Alfa knew land letter Liberia Library lived London Louisiana Mandingo Mandinka March Marschalk Mawdo McPhail MiDAH Monrovia Muslims NAdCo Natchez Negro newspaper Norfolk North NYJC Orleans Papers person Philadelphia plantation planters Prince Pullo purchased quotation Qur'an records river Roseau Sept ship slave slavery Sori Sori's Spanish Tappan Thomas Foster Thomas's Timbo Timbuktu tion tobacco town trade Travels Washington William write York