The Red Rebellion occurred from 1915-1916 during the Great War. It had been predicted nearly forty years before by Abraham Lincoln, one of the founders of the Socialist Party of the United States, who was asked "How would a Socialist revolution come about in the Confederacy?" and responded "It would come from the Blacks!".
Indeed, many Confederate blacks were influenced by Lincoln's own writings as well as those of Karl Marx, and revolted against the oppressive, white-dominated government of the Confederate States and attempted to form socialist republics.
About 10% of the 10 million blacks in the Confederacy were involved. With the help of the United States, the rebellion became a major problem, diverting precious Confederate manpower and resources, including men from the frontlines, to crush the uprisings.
In the beginning, there were mass demonstrations and uprisings by Blacks also in towns and cities such as Charleston. These, however, were quickly suppressed and rebellious blacks retreated into the countryside where they formed their own revolutionary republics. One notable republic was the Congaree Socialist Republic whose leaders mainly came from Anne Colleton's Marshlands Plantation. This particular Socialist Republic lasted longer than most, if not all, of the others, owing to the effective leadership of its ruling junta.
Another republic that gained notoriety was the Black Belt Socialist Republic, which was brought down by Jefferson Pinkard's unit. During the post-war time era in the CSA, especially after the rise to power of the Freedom Party, blacks generally were scapegoated for the rebellion and the Confederacy's defeat during the Great War.
The small amount of liberties that the blacks had gained since the Second Mexican War was lost due to this rebellion. The post-war hatred toward blacks helped the rise of the hardliner Freedom Party and their leader Jake Featherston. Upon assuming power, the new regime began a genocidal campaign on the black population, designed to provoke them into armed conflict. In response, some blacks took up arms once again, usually attacking in small raids and using guerrilla warfare. This gave Jake Featherston the excuse to begin rearming the CSA first by breaking the limitations on arms, then reintroducing conscription. This fighting continued into the Second Great War.
See also[]
- Russian Revolution, another socialist revolution that took place during the Great War.
