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Primary sourceSpeech24 February and 1 March 1841

Argument of John Quincy Adams before the Supreme Court in the case of United States v. Cinque (Amistad)

John Quincy Adams · 24 February and 1 March 1841

The printed 1841 speech in which former President John Quincy Adams argued before the Supreme Court for the freedom of the Amistad Africans.

Adams personally delivered this argument, showing his later career as an advocate against slavery.

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Title page of the printed 1841 speech 'Argument of John Quincy Adams, before the Supreme Court of the United States, in the case of the United States, appellants, vs. Cinque, and others, Africans, captured in the schooner Amistad'. It notes the speech was delivered February 24 and March 1, 1841, with a review of the case of the Antelope, and was printed in New York by S. W. Benedict, 128 Fulton Street, 1841.
John Quincy Adams, Argument before the Supreme Court in United States v. Cinque, 1841. Library of Congress.

About this source

What it is

This is the printed text of a speech delivered by John Quincy Adams before the U.S. Supreme Court on February 24 and March 1, 1841, in the case concerning Cinque and other Africans captured aboard the schooner Amistad. It was printed in New York in 1841 and is held by the Library of Congress.

Why it matters

By 1841 Adams was an elderly former president, yet he took on the defence of the Amistad Africans, arguing from principles of natural rights against slavery. The speech also reviewed an earlier case, that of the ship Antelope, connecting it to the broader struggle over slavery and freedom in American law.

Look closer

  • Why might a former president choose to argue a case like this before the Supreme Court?
  • How does Adams describe himself at the start of his speech, and why might he do so?
  • What does this document reveal about how slavery was debated in American courts?

This speech is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of John Quincy Adams on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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