Dorothy Creole

Reytory Angola ( – 1689) was a woman from New Amsterdam of African descent. Brought to the colony as a slave of the Dutch West India Company, she received conditional manumission in 1644. In 1661, she became the first person of African descent to petition a legislature as an individual when she successfully requested the manumission of her adopted son.

Biography The early life of Reytory Angola is largely unknown. From her last name, it can be surmised that she was likely from Angola. She was brought to New Amsterdam as a slave of the Dutch West India Company sometime between 1626 and 1640. In addition to her native language and Dutch, she likely also spoke Spanish and Portuguese. While enslaved, Reytory was likely a house slave, though female slaves in New Amsterdam were sometimes also made to help male slaves in the construction of homes and roads. Sometime around 1640, she married Paulo d'Angolawho was one of the first enslaved people brought to New Amsterdam – though it is not known if the marriage was recognized by the Dutch Reformed Church in New Amsterdam.

Reytory first appears in the historical record in 1643, when she witnessed the baptism of her godson Cleyn Anthony at a Dutch Reformed Church. When Anthony's mother died several weeks after giving birth, Reytory and her husband adopted the child.

In February 1644, Paulowho had been a slave of the Company for 15 years – successfully petitioned the director of New Netherland, Willem Kieft, for his and Reytory's freedom. Director Peter Stuyvesant agreed with this argument and granted Anthony a writ of manumission; Anthony was also named heir of his adopted parents' land. The New York Historical Society suggests that this likely indicates that Reytory had "acquired political and legal expertise during her years in the colony".

In 1664, the English conquered New Amsterdam and renamed it to New York. As the guarantees of freedom granted to Reytory's family came from the Dutch, it was unclear if they would be re-enslaved by the English, who were expanding slavery in their colonies. Stuyvesant advocated on behalf of the family, and the English confirmed their freedom and landholdings in 1667, though they "lived under the constant threat of re-enslavement" if the colonial laws changed. Reytory died in 1689.