MARIE-JOSEPH ANGELIQUE, the slave of a wealthy Montreal merchant, de Francheville, carried out one of the most dramatic acts of resistance on April 17, 1734. After learning she was going to be sold, Marie-Joseph set fire to her owner's house in order to cover her escape. The fire engulfed and destroyed 46 buildings including the Hotel Dieu. In June of 1734 she was captured, tortured, paraded through the streets, then hanged and her body burned.

From: The Black Studies Centre; Montreal, Quebec

 

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