West Florida was a Spanish province, stretching from the present Florida panhandle to the eastern bank of the Mississippi River. By the time of the American Revolution, the majority of West Florida's inhabitants were English-speaking settlers. These settlers were very interested in joining the United States. The most vocal groups were the owners of large plantations and the Kemper brothers, who were described at the time as "drunken frontier rabble." The Kempers led an abortive rebellion in 1803, but were shortly driven into the bayou, where they resumed their earlier exuberant lifestyle.
A more serious threat to Spanish dominion occurred at Baton Rouge in 1810. Following Napoleon's invasion of Spain, the Spanish dominions fell into turmoil, and the American settlers at Baton Rouge formed a Committee of Public Safety. After a short period of pretended cooperation, the Committee ousted the provincial government. On July 25, the Committee, headed by a John Rhea, asked the United States for annexation and a loan to finance the Committee's government. President James Madison refused. The Committee, dismayed, applied itself to the dreary work of organizing a more permanent authority, and a republic was declared under the presidency of Fulmar Skipwith, a prominent local planter and former American diplomat, on September 26. The Republic of West Florida then formally applied for statehood. President Madison was annoyed with the planters' action, since it threatened his ongoing negotiations to take all of Spanish Florida. Balancing the gain against European disapproval, Madison accepted the fait accompli and American troops moved south to take possession in October.