Source: Amy Notes (ID702)
Author: Howard, Amy (ID633)
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this must have been a sight. Justis must not have felt safe using any place in town to sort things 
this must have been a sight. Justis must not have felt safe using any place in town to sort things out.
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Moral rejected Justis' demand for the keys
Date Created: 2023-10-12 20:56:17
Source: The Governorship of Spanish Florida (ID 122)
Author: TePaske, John J. (ID 86)
Content_id: 3866
Thus, on the morning of March 12, Justis appeared before Moral requesting him to surrender his office. Moral was openly hostile. He adamantly refused to honor the new governor’s dispatch of title or to hand over the keys to the fort and the town and audaciously suggested that Justis disregard his instructions and go back to Cuba where he belonged. Shocked and alarmed, Justis refused to be intimidated and reboarded his ship to lay new plans. AN387 In the meantime Moral proclaimed Justis and intruder, called the city to arms, and doubled the guard around his own residence. [Note: interim gov to king 11/22/1737] AN388 Justis’ next move was to approach the governor as if the first incident had never occurred. Undeterred by Moral’s intransigent position, the new governor went to him a second time, repeated the initial request for certification of credentials. Again the governor refused, but this time he commanded his soldiers AN389 to seize Justis and to imprison him on Santa Anastasia Island, a crucial step for Moral in his shaky position. If his grenadiers carried out his orders, he could, perhaps, remain in the governorship, at least for a time. If they refused, he would be finished in Florida. In the end the regulars refused to rally to Moral’s support and left Justis at large, a clear sign that Moral’s fall was imminent. They did not, however, commit themselves to the new governor. Justis had won the second round in his fight to take the governorship, but the battle was not over. He stilled needed military support to seize Moral and assume his new office. Although the Florida regulars refused to back the governor, they had not as yet agreed to lend their support to his Cuban replacement; and to become governor, Justis had to have help. AN390 Finally, Auxiliary Bishop Buenaventura, offered Justis a solution. He suggested that the new governor attempt to free all colonial leaders incarcerated by Moral during the purge in 1736. Respected officers like Iturrieta, Rodriguez Rozo, and Lopez de Toledo might form a strong nucleus of support for Justis and might be useful in persuading undecided soldiers and colonists to join the new governor against Moral. Convinced that the plan was sound, Justis managed to bring the Saint Augustine jailors over to his side and to free the imprisoned officers. [Note: interim gov to king 11/22/1737] This move was crucial in breaking Moral’s hold on Florida. (Tepaske GSF)