Baptist War facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Baptist War
Part of North American slave revolts
Date 25 December 1831-1832 Location Colony of Jamaica Result Rebellion suppressed
Belligerents
Colony of Jamaica	Slave rebels
Commanders and leaders
Willoughby Cotton	Samuel Sharpe
Casualties and losses
None	~500 people dead

The Baptist War, also known as the Sam Sharpe Rebellion or the Great Jamaican Slave Revolt, was a big uprising that happened in Colony of Jamaica from late 1831 to early 1832. It lasted for eleven days, starting on December 25, 1831. About 60,000 enslaved people out of Jamaica's 300,000 joined the revolt. This rebellion was led by Samuel Sharpe, a black Baptist church leader. Even though the rebels didn't win militarily, this event played a huge part in ending slavery across the entire British Empire.

Why the Rebellion Started

The enslaved people who led this rebellion had learned a lot from missionaries. They were closely watching the movement to end slavery in London. Their first idea was to have a peaceful general strike, where everyone would stop working.

Enslaved people who were Baptists seemed more ready to take action compared to those from other churches. This might have been because white Baptist missionaries were often away. This meant that black church leaders had more freedom to guide their religious groups. They even changed some Baptist ideas to fit their own experiences. For example, they focused a lot on John the Baptist, sometimes more than on Jesus.

A missionary named Thomas Burchell came back to Jamaica from England after Christmas. Many Baptist church members thought he would bring official papers from King William IV saying that slavery was over. They also believed the King's soldiers would make sure this order was followed. When the Jamaican governor announced that no such freedom had been granted, the enslaved people became very upset.

The Strike and the Uprising

The rebellion was inspired by Samuel Sharpe, a Baptist preacher. Enslaved black workers demanded more freedom and a wage of "half the going wage rate." They promised each other they would not work until plantation owners met their demands. The enslaved workers believed that simply stopping work would be enough. They only planned to use force if violence was used against them. Sharpe was called "Daddy" Sharpe because he was such an inspiration. His main leaders were also literate enslaved people, just like him. These included Johnson, Campbell, Robert Gardner, Thomas Dove, John Tharp, and George Taylor.

This became the biggest slave uprising in the British West Indies. It involved as many as 60,000 of Jamaica's 300,000 enslaved people. During the rebellion, fourteen white people were killed by armed rebel groups. About 207 rebels were also killed.

The rebellion truly began on December 27. Enslaved people set fire to Kensington estate, located in the hills above Montego Bay. Colonel William Grignon, a militia leader, managed several estates. Incidents at his Salt Spring estate in December helped spark the uprising.

Grignon led the militia against the rebels at Belvedere estate. But his forces had to retreat, leaving the rebels in control of the rural areas of St James parish.

On December 31, the colonial government declared martial law. Sir Willoughby Cotton, who commanded the British forces, asked the Jamaican Maroons from Accompong Town for help. This happened in the second week of January. However, when the Accompong Maroons attacked the rebels at Catadupa, they had to pull back because the rebels were "too strong."

Soon, the Accompong Maroons gained the upper hand. They defeated the rebels in one fight, killing Campbell, one of Sharpe's deputies. When the regular army soldiers were surrounded by rebels at Maroon Town, the Accompong Maroons rescued them. They killed more rebels and captured many, including another of Sharpe's deputies, Dehany.

When the Windward Maroons from Charles Town, Jamaica and Moore Town also joined the fight, the rebels' cause was lost. These eastern Maroons killed and captured other rebels, including a leader named Gillespie. One of the last rebel leaders, Gardner, gave up when he heard the Charles Town Maroons had joined the fight against them.

Ending the Rebellion and Deaths

The colonial government quickly stopped the rebellion. The government's actions and the revenge taken by the plantocracy (plantation owners) were much harsher than anything the rebels did. About 500 enslaved people were killed. Around 207 were killed directly during the revolt. After the rebellion, an estimated 310 to 340 enslaved people were killed through official executions. Sometimes, enslaved people were executed for very small crimes, like stealing a pig or a cow.

After the rebellion, the damage to property was huge. A report in March 1832 estimated the damage at over £1.1 million. This would be about £124 million in 2021 money. Thousands of rebels had set fire to more than 100 properties. They destroyed over 40 sugar factories and nearly 100 planters' homes.

The planters suspected many missionaries of encouraging the rebellion. Some, like William Knibb and Henry Bleby, were arrested and treated badly, but later released. Groups of white colonists also destroyed churches where black congregations met.

What Happened Next

Because of the Baptist War, hundreds of enslaved people ran away into the Cockpit Country. They wanted to avoid being forced back into slavery. The Maroons were only able to catch a small number of these runaways. Many remained free when the British parliament passed the law ending slavery in 1833.

Historians believe that the harshness of the Jamaican plantation owners during the revolt sped up the British government's decision to free the enslaved people. When missionaries like Burchell and Knibb described how badly they were treated by the colonial militias, the British Parliament was outraged. They couldn't believe that white planters had attacked white missionaries.

Parliament then passed the Slavery Abolition Act 1833. This law started to take effect in 1834. It led to some enslaved people being freed right away (children aged six or younger). Others had to work as apprentices for six years. Finally, all chattel slavery (where people were treated as property) ended completely in 1838.

In Literature

• Andrea Levy's 2010 novel The Long Song tells the story of the Baptist War through a fictional tale.
• The 1929 novel The White Witch of Rosehall, by Herbert G. de Lisser, has its most exciting part set at Rose Hall during the Baptist War.