The uprising of enslaved Africans and Afro-descendants of the Hacienda de Santa Bárbara de Calderón – a sugar-producing estate in the region of Amilpas, near Cuautla – illustrates both the harsh conditions of plantation slavery and the strategies employed by enslaved people to seek justice within the colonial system. The revolt was reportedly triggered by news that the enslaved workforce might be sold following the death of the estate owner. Fearing the breakup of families and continued servitude, approximately fifty enslaved men and women organized a collective departure from the hacienda. Rather than seeking refuge in remote areas, as many runaway slaves did, they armed themselves with agricultural tools and marched toward Mexico City, camping near the viceregal palace, with the intention of appealing directly to the Viceroy for protection and redress. On August 12, the authorities acted by arresting six leaders of the group (five men and one woman) and initiating legal proceedings. The petitioners described severe physical abuse, excessive workloads, inadequate opportunities for rest and nourishment, and punishments that had allegedly caused serious injuries and deaths. In the end, the authorities settled the case through a compromise. On the one hand, the leaders of the uprising were sentenced to six lashes each and ordered to be sold elsewhere; on the other, the owners of the hacienda were admonished to replace the overseer and improve the treatment of their enslaved workers. The event is historically significant mostly because it combined collective resistance, political protest, and legal negotiation. Instead of merely escaping bondage, the rebels sought to use the colonial institutions to challenge local abuses, which they ultimately succeeded in doing, albeit partially.