990
edits
Changes
→The First Seminole War
In 1763, during the period of British rule in Florida, the region that became the state was divided into two administrative areas, East and West Florida (Figure 1). The Apalachicola River was used as a dividing line and the region was seen as too large to be administered by one local government. In the early 1800s, Florida became a refuge for runaway slaves. Florida had no slavery policy and slaves saw Florida as a good refuge. Between 1783–1821, Spain regained Florida but it was unable to have very effective control given the region was of little consequence to Spain and limited resources were available, making the region a de facto self-administered region. This upset the United States because Spain could not control the Seminoles and return runaway slaves. Over time, as more slaves ran away to Florida, the Black Seminoles developed into another cultural group. While some Seminoles did keep slaves, Black Seminoles and other slaves were generally free to live where they wanted even if they were technically slaves, with the Black Seminoles often living in separate villages from Seminole settlements. In fact, since the 17th century, black slaves were running away to Florida to escape plantations and over time many black slaves intermarried with Seminoles and other native groups. This process only accelerated as the United States retained slavery in its southern states.<ref>For more on the Black Seminoles and early history of Florida, see: Porter, Kenneth Wiggins, Alcione M. Amos, Thomas P. Senter, and Rosalyn Howard. <i>The Black Seminoles: History of a Freedom-Seeking People</i>. Rev. ed. Gainesville: Univ. Press of Florida, 2013.</ref>
The continued practice of slaves finding refuge in Florida served as one motivation for the First Seminole War. The second key motivation were raids by Seminoles, although farmers and militia from southern states also raided Florida. The First Seminole War was effectively cross-border raids and an invasion led by Andrew Jackson between 1816-1819, with the conflict having no clear date when it actually began. The United States had wanted to acquire Florida during the time of the War of 1812. In fact, a detachment of soldiers had occupied St. Augustine, causing tensions with Spain. Black Seminoles had fought US soldiers and militia who had invaded, fearing they would take away their relatively greater freedom in Florida. A fort was created in northern Florida to help defend the territory and the so-called Scott Massacre of civilians, committed by native Creeks who were in conflict with the United States, and soldiers started the war that led to the invasion of Florida by Andrew Jackson. Jackson led a series of raids in 1818 against native civilians and various native tribesand their warriors. The militia and military unit Jackson led did not discriminate who they attacked and in May 1818 his forces took Pensacola, what was the capital of West Florida. Eventually Jackson withdrew after he was condemned within the United States and abroad, including Spain which did not participate in the war , although a brief canon exchange occurred between US and Spanish forces, but the war took place mainly on its Spanish territory. During the time of the conflict, the US had been in negotiations to acquire Florida from Spain as its own territory and for a while the actions by Jackson caused Spain to stop negotiations. The conflict also left a stain on Jackson's reputation for having executed two British citizens without adequate trial.<ref>For more on the period up to the First Seminole War in Florida's history, see: Wasserman, Adam. <i>A People’s History of Florida, 1513-1876: How Africans, Seminoles, Women, and Lower Class Whites Shaped the Sunshine State</i>. Sarasota, Fla.: A. Wasserman, 2010.</ref>
[[File:Map-of-East-and-West-Florida.jpg|thumb|left|Figure 1. Florida was divided into two administrative regions before it became united as one territory and state.]]
