Manumit

To manumit means to release from slavery or servitude; to liberate or set free. Historically, this term applied specifically to the emancipation of enslaved people, granting them legal freedom and the rights of citizenship. It signified a significant legal and social transition, ending the ownership and control of one individual by another. The act of manumission could occur through various means, including the owner's voluntary action (like a will or deed), the purchase of freedom by the enslaved person, or through legal mechanisms enacted by a governing body. Manumission aimed to overturn the dehumanizing effects of slavery, offering a path to autonomy and self-determination for those formerly held in bondage, though often with significant challenges in achieving true equality.

Manumit meaning with examples

• The wealthy plantation owner, regretting his past actions, decided to manumit all his slaves upon his death. This decision, detailed in his will, granted them land, resources, and the opportunity to start new lives as free individuals in a society that was at the time still divided on racial lines.
• Through years of diligent work, the enslaved carpenter saved enough money to purchase his own freedom, eventually persuading his master to manumit him. He was finally able to leave his plantation, with the promise of a better life ahead, and the right to choose his own fate at long last.
• During times of political turmoil and civil strife, some factions would advocate for the manumission of the enslaved population, believing that releasing the enslaved would undermine the opposing force. This tactic was employed to weaken the opposing forces' economies.
• A decree issued by the emperor declared that all children born to enslaved women would be immediately manumitted, in an attempt to gradually eliminate slavery. This created a new reality for the community, where people were born free and the system started to show its age.
• Many abolitionist societies actively worked to pressure slave owners to manumit their enslaved people, providing financial assistance or advocating for legal reforms that would pave the way for emancipation. Their aim was to overturn the cruel institution of slavery and the practice of manumitting was important to their goal.