The King's Soldiers: Black Auxiliaries in the Spanish and British Empires

This paper will explore the experiences of the King’s Auxiliary troops who fought on behalf of the Spanish King Charles IV in Saint Domingue and their subsequent dispersal to disparate locations from Florida to Cádiz to Panama. The unusual nature of this particular group of individuals lends itself naturally to comparison with yet another group of auxiliaries, the Black Loyalists who were settled in Nova Scotia after the American Revolution. Focusing upon the auxiliaries who were relocated to Puntagorda in Panama and the Black Loyalists who ended up at Birchtown, Nova Scotia, this research will deepen our understanding of the challenges faced by the formerly enslaved in each of the settings, the Spanish and the British empires at the end of the eighteenth century. This will allow for a comparative analysis of issues ranging from imperial policy towards veterans of colour, to the reception of those populations and the nature of race relations within these communities. The larger questions to be probed within these contexts will also reflect upon identity formation and representation within these various experiences and the effects of these upon the nation building process in Canada and Central America.