![](http://freeprota.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/gabrielprosserpict-1.jpg)
They were prevented from reaching Richmond by a storm that washed out the bridges and made the roads impassable. Governor Monroe promptly responded, having already been made aware of the plot after two slaves alerted the authorities of what was planned. Monroe called out more than 600 troops and contacted every militia commander in the state. The authorities arrested many of the slaves but Prosser escaped. Of those captured 35 suffered the death penalty. Following his capture in late September, Gabriel Prosser refused to talk and was also executed.
To learn more about the revolt read Herbert Aptheker’s account, an extract from his book American Negro Slave Revolts (1943) hosted on the World History Archives site.