Nathaniel "Nat" Turner was a black slave who led a rebellion in the American South in the summer of 1831. A charismatic leader, Turner gathered about 75 slaves to his cause. By the time the insurrection was suppressed, more than 100 were dead, and Turner was hanged. In the aftermath, laws were passed to prevent the education of slaves and a deeper schism opened between abolitionists and slaveholders. The rebellion was truly a harbinger of the bloody events to come. This significant story of pre-Civil War America is the focus of this comprehensive volume, a valuable support for social studies curricula.