Between 1542 and 1803, Spain, Great Britain and France all occupied parts of the current United States. All three great European powers also alternatively controlled and competed for parts of Florida.

While slavery existed in all three nations, the slave laws, codes and treatment varied between them. Enslaved blacks both in Florida and its neighboring British colonies used both the ongoing rivalry between these nations and the variable slave practices to improve their circumstances.

A Map of the Kingdom of Great Britain’s Dominions in Europe, Africa and America.
London, 1635.
Historical Museum of Southern Florida.
1994-336-7.