The reading of, The Confessions of Nat Turner by the distinguished actor, Brock Peters, represents the first attempt to make Turner, leader of the most massive slave revolt ever to occur in America, known to a large popular audience. A widely circulated novel, recently awarded a Pulitzer prize, was the cause for a number of scholars and critics.
The basic historical document relating to the Nat Turner revolt is, “The Confessions of Nat Turner” by Thomas R. Gray, published in Baltimore in 1831. This document was prepared by a white man, Gray, who was not partial to the cause Nat Turner and his fellow slaves were fighting for. But for all of its limitations, The Gray Confessions remains the primary source of information on the most famous slave revolt ever to occur in the United States.
The Confession of Nat Turner | Read by Brock Peters (1968)