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Augustine, Florida, which was then controlled by the Spanish. After converting to Catholicism and agreeing to join the St. Augustine militia, he was granted his freedom.

He rose to the rank of captain, and in he was put in charge of the first free black settlement in America, Fort Mose. Established by Florida's governor Manuel Montiano, Fort Mose became a haven for more than a hundred freed or fugitive slaves from the British colonies. Spanish records note at least six separate groups of slaves who escaped from South Carolina to St. Augustine between and This policy of refuge encouraged fugitive slaves to flee to Spanish Florida with the hope of a better life if they made it to a Spanish outpost, and it gave the Spanish a weapon to use against the British.

From this boardwalk, visitors can look across the marshy landscape where the ruins of Fort Mose Site lay. Courtesy of Ebyabe on Wikimedia Commons. In , Florida governor Antonio de Benavides created a black slave militia to help the white Spanish regiments defend St.

Augustine from British attacks. He escaped to St. Augustine from South Carolina with nine other slaves in He believed it only applied to slaves who arrived in Florida during wartime. In , the government in Spain outlawed the sale of runaway slaves to private citizens and offered the soldiers freedom after four additional years of service. Fort Mose was its unofficial name. Mose, and may have been used by a man of Mose for protection in travel, battle or on the water.

Christopher was the most common saint to which black religious confraternities in Havana were devoted. Although firearms were the preferred weapon of choice, it is probable that at least some of the Indian allies and enemies of the Spaniards in St. Augustine fought with bows and arrows.

These small chert projectile points are common in eighteenth century sites in and around St. By the eighteenth century Spanish regiments had standard-issue uniforms. These brass buttons are found very commonly in eighteenth century St.

Augustine sites, and are probably uniform buttons. Eighteenth century gun hardware and weapon elements. The siege of St. Augustine by Oglethorpe in was dealt a fatal blow by the Spanish, African and Indian forces who defeated the British occupying Fort Mose. Fort Mose Golf Tournament. Annual Meeting. Fort Mose State Park. Plan Your Visit. Download a Brochure. Get Directions. Augustine, FL The Fort Mose Story. Fort Mose Historical Overview.

The Beginnings of Fort Mose More than years ago, courageous Africans escaped from enslavement in British colonies. Get In Touch!