When the underclass was composed of slaves, however, and the distinction was racial, then whites could unite to think of themselves as special. When the underclass was white, and the distinction was one of class, there was inevitably class conflict, which occasionally would erupt in violence. Since such persons, by definition, could not be good republicans, they were not entitled to the benefits of republican liberty. Building off the classical notions that first, a successful republic requires virtuous citizens, and second, virtue requires economic independence, Morgan argues that republican ideologists were able to ignore those persons, white or black, who didn’t fit the mold.
This in turn gradually reduced the size of the white underclass, which had previously threatened the security of the Virginia gentry. The growth of slavery then significantly curtailed the flow of indentured servants into Virginia. He argues that improvements in the tobacco market meant planters could afford to make the greater initial investment required to purchase slaves, rather than the contracts of indentured servants. His argument is meticulously researched and presented in great detail. He focuses on Virginia, which had the most slaves of any of the 13 colonies and yet also produced the authors of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, as well as 4 of the first 5 Presidents. Morgan confronts that irony head-on and seeks to explain how such contradictions could coexist. It’s the huge irony in the creation of the United States: a country dedicated to freedom but founded on the back of slavery. Explaining the great American contradiction
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