Document Analysis of John Brown’s Address to the Virginia Court

whoremaster Browns reference to the Virginia Court Origin The carry on apt(p) by John Brown to the Virginia court was his final words earlier execution on charges of treason. The charges were given because of a wear out that he enjoin with the intent to take federal official weapons which is an act of treason. On October 16th-18th, 1859, the radical emancipationist John Brown led a group of white and sorry men, including two of his sons, on Harpers Ferry, Virginia. Browns goal was to seize the federal arsenal, arm the local slaves, and fight a way into the North as described in this primary source in court.This wear was not surprising because of his abolitionist background and insanity as described by the Robert E. Lee who led the Union Army that suppressed the revolt. The group held up in a fire department and was attacked by Lees soldiers. The failed attempt resulted in Browns capture, trial, and execution on celestial latitude 2nd. This episode of slave resistance was th e last major rebellion contri exclusivelye to the secession of the South and, eventually, the Civil War. Purpose John Brown had a a few purpose for delivering this address.Obviously, it was given in response to charges pile up from the raid, and the address too makes several points explaining his defense. Brown stated that he did not intend to fire a single gun but cute simply to take slaves from plantations and lead them to northern states or Canada. Brown also stated that he did not induce the others involved in the raid to join him which lessened his crime in his mind. To the charges he addressed, I neer did intend murder, or treason, or the destruction of property, or to excite or incite slaves to rebellion, or to make insurrection.Though he denied the charges, one can suppose that Brown really did want a slave revolt to put across in the South due to his strong abolitionist moral philosophy and beliefs. If the raid were to be successful, Brown would not stop with those slaves, but rather save his forced manumission of the South. Browns impression of the trial was one of satisfaction, but he argued that it is unjust that I should suffer such a punishment of death. He made this argument because his intent was not to start this uprising but, instead, to be an act of defiance that he knew would indirectly cause a mass insurrection in the South.Value John Browns address is not a historical landmark and was a less probatory historical document that had minimal aftermath however, it provides a specific mannikin of responses in court giving insight into how acts of slave resistance atomic number 18 dealt with legally. Brown gives this document a unique texture because of his eloquence in court compared with his savagery in the raid. Overall, he is given the status of a martyr with his words I submit to death so let it be done Brown reveals a very different lieu of his temperament in which he is a dignified martyr.He predicts that slavery will neve r end peacefully in the country whose rights are disregarded by wicked, cruel, and unjust enactments. Historians can use this document today to show pile strong in their beliefs who act upon them, and although some failed in their efforts, their cause was strengthened. Limitations The address made by John Brown contains several limitations that affect its reference point as a historical source. A significant limiting federal agent is that there is only one opinion to explain the raid. Brown had a biased opinion mainly because of his childhood having been greatly influenced with abolitionist morals and beliefs.One would think that Browns address would be biased in spite of his numerous accusations, but he speaks as if he had nada to lose. The aiding and abetting criminals in the raid would not have delivered a speech as dignified and passionate as Browns but would plainly be similar in their renditions of the event. To fully understand Browns raid, historians would need to consu lt Robert E. Lees notes. After viewing twain sides of the story, a historian can either choose a side or make an inference that incorporates both.