Marie-Joseph Angelique (Paperback)

High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Marie-Joseph Angelique (commonly known as Angelique or "Angelica;" died June 21, 1734) was the name given by her last owners to a Portuguese-born black slave in New France (later the province of Quebec in Canada). She was tried and convicted of setting fire to her owner's home, burning much of what is now referred to as Old Montreal. Until recently, it was generally accepted that Angelique was guilty of the crime of which she was accused. However, it has recently been argued that she was, in fact, innocent of the crime and convicted more on the basis of her perception as a rebellious runaway slave than on the basis of factual evidence. A competing theory is that she was guilty of the crime as an act of justified rebellion against slavery. No consensus has been reached by the modern historical community on Angelique's guilt or innocence.