The Amistad Revolt, 1839 This illustration depicts the mutiny of forty-nine African slaves led by Cinqué on board the Spanish ship Amistad off the coast of Cuba. After the rebels killed Captain Ramón Ferrer, they sailed to Long Island, New York. In subsequent judicial proceedings, the federal courts ruled that the slaves were entitled to their freedom, and they were returned to Africa. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University