For black slaves, the presence of British forces presented an
opportunity for independence and a new life as Loyalists. At the
start of the conflict, British commanders offered freedom to
enslaved blacks who would join them. Such proclamations were
pragmatic efforts to weaken the rebels. They were framed by
military and political considerations, not humanitarian ones.
Even so, during and after the war philanthropists and advocates
of emancipation in Britain provided practical assistance to
former slaves who had managed to leave with the British and
maintain their freedom. For black North Carolinians, the chief
opportunities to escape slavery in this way came near the
beginning and the end of the war, when British forces were
nearby. The pro-British Black Pioneers originated with the 1776
exodus. Black sergeants Thomas Peters and Murphy Steel were
crucial leaders in this corps, although their commanding officer
was a white North Carolinian, Allen Stewart. For larger numbers
of African Americans, however, the B