Bridgerton author Julia Quinn chooses Harriet Tubman as a history hero
Harriet Tubman: in profile
Harriet Tubman was an American abolitionist. Born into slavery, she escaped in 1849, and subsequently escorted many other enslaved people to safety in free states and, later, Canada, where slavery had been abolished. After the outbreak of the American Civil War she served in the Union Army as a cook, nurse, scout and spy. In later life she was active in the women’s suffrage movement. She died in 1913, aged about 90.
When did you first hear about Harriet Tubman?
I can’t remember not knowing about her. In the US, she’s regarded as an iconic figure in the struggle for black emancipation, particularly through her work with the Underground Railroad – the network of secret routes and safe houses that helped enslaved people escape to freedom.
What kind of woman was she?
Born into slavery in Maryland, she was brutally beaten and whipped by enslavers – she suffered lifelong dizziness, pain and hypersomnia after being hit on the head by a heavy metal weight while just a girl. She was a petite, deeply religious woman, but the qualities that made her so exceptional were her courage and powerful sense of right and wrong.
What made Tubman a hero?
First, the incredible bravery she showed in escaping enslavement in 1849 and then in repeatedly returning to Maryland to rescue other enslaved people from the inhuman treatment to which they were subjected. Second, her extraordinary exploits on behalf of the Union Army during the American Civil War: she even led a charge that resulted in the liberation of more than 700 enslaved people. Last, her vigorous campaigning for women’s suffrage. Her actions would be heroic at any time, but were especially so in the age in which she lived.
What was her finest hour?
It’s not a single moment or act but her repeated trips back to Maryland – 13 missions in all, leading more than 70 people to freedom along the Underground Railroad. Tubman travelled mainly at night to avoid detection, but still there was a great risk to her personal safety – one Maryland newspaper offered a $100 reward for her capture – so every return trip to a slave state was perilous. Yet she never lost a ‘passenger’ [rescued person].
Is there anything that you don’t particularly admire about her?
Not really. I don’t share her religious zeal, though it was this very zeal that gave her the strength to undertake her rescue work.
Do you think she deserves to be better known outside the US?
Yes – and I hope that plans to put her face on the US $20 bill come to fruition, because that would help introduce her to all who visit America. We currently don’t have a single woman or person of colour on any of our paper notes.
What would you ask her if you could meet her?
Weren’t you scared? And how did you work past that fear?
Julia Quinn is the author of the Bridgerton series of books. Her latest novel, Queen Charlotte, is out now. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is available to watch on Netflix.
This article was first published in the August 2023 issue of BBC History Magazine
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