Nat Turner - Great Lives Observed Author:Eric Foner "Despite the fact that he organized and led the most important slave rebellion in this nation's history, most of the life of Nat Turner is shrouded in mystery. We know a great deal - although by no means enough - about the days in August, 1831, when he and his followers cut a bloody path through Southampton County, Virginia, and indelib... more »ly inscribed the name Nat Turner in the psyches of both white and black Americans. But the only important information about his life prior to 1831 comes from the Confessions he dictated to the white lawyer, Thomas Gray, while awaiting trial and execution. Other contemporary sources add only a few tantalizing hints." - From the Editor's Introduction
Through selections from newspapers, court records, speeches, and excerpts from the works of noted historians, Eric Foner furnishes as much as is known about the life of Nat Turner, including his complete Confessions, and traces Turner's legend as he emerged among both blacks and whites as either martyr or fiend.« less