https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb5lmdCfdC4

Another congolese queen who the first black african minister in sweden:Lawyer by profession

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxNVxD79ysk

[size=16pt]Toussaint Louverture(Haitian)[/size]


"By early 1794 Toussaint Louverture was able to organize 4,000[citation needed] blacks into a band of loyal guerrilla troops, as he was a gifted, although untrained, leader and military strategist. It was not until February 1794 that the French Convention formally abolished slavery. Toussaint negotiated with General Laveaux and changed sides in May 1794. He then fought against the Spanish Empire, recovering all the forts of the Cordon de L'Ouest in less than two weeks and delivering the North to the French Republic. He also fought against the British Empire"

"By June 1795, the British had been driven back to the coast. In July the Spanish officially withdrew. Although the British continued to fight from coastal towns, Toussaint maintained his control over the North and West of Saint-Domingue. In May 1797 Sonthonax named Toussaint Louverture commander-in-chief of the French republican army in Saint-Domingue."

"He was also successful in leading his relatively small band of troops (in lightning quick strikes) to gain strategic defeats and the withdrawal of an army of 10,000 British soldiers. In 1798, the British made a last-ditch attempt to oust Louverture by attacking from the South, sending General Thomas Maitland. Maitland failed and signed a secret treaty in which Toussaint Louverture agreed to leave the ports open to commercial shipping of all nations. The British withdrew from the colony."
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toussaint_L%27Ouverture
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3p2990.html

^^^^How Bad Ass Was Toussaint L' Ouverture?

This Haitian warrior was perhaps one of the most dangerous black military strategists that has ever been born! Unlike Hannibal, Samori Ture, Bai Bureh, and other Black strategists, Toussaint L' Ouverture was UNDEFEATED.

No one ever beat him on the battlefield, and he went toe-to-toe with the French, Spanish, and British, and kicked all their a$$es!!! It was Toussaint L' Ouverture who who played a key role in the success of the Haitian revolution.

Toussaint L' Ouverture, a historical Black figure that is unknown to many African Americans, was so powerful that Napoleon recognized his authority and the United States made trade deals with him where they agreed he would not invade the U.S.

This implied that if Toussaint L' Ouverture invaded the U.S. if the American Black slaves joined him then potentially the United States could have become a Black nation.

This guy was so tough they had to trick him to kidnap him, that is the only way they got him. He was never defeated in battle.

nice read!

Epiphany: nice read!

Glad you liked it.

[size=18pt]The Battle of Adwa[/size] (also called Adowa and Adua) was fought over two days (1st / 2nd March) between Ethiopian forces under Emperor Menelik II and invading Italian forces, and was the deciding battle in the First Italo-Ethiopian war and a turning point in modern African history with a European Colonial power being defeated and Ethiopia being recognized as a sovereign nation state by the European powers.

As the scramble for Africa came to an end Italy was allocated Ethiopia but just needed to take control. Ethiopia was largely unknown to Europeans who were aware of the coastal areas due to trade but the central highlands had resisted any attempts to spread European influence. The Italians wrongly assumed that Ethiopia was made up of rival tribes and thought it would be a quick victory for their 20,000 strong invasion forces, only to face a united country with a much larger army.
Emperor Menelik II had swept away old fashioned recruiting systems which had led to defeat by British forces previously and replaced them with much better organisation and supply. With a better organised economy the Ethiopian Emperor had greatly increased his ability to raise and equip an army and he reacted quickly when the Italian plans became known. Within two months he had raised 100,000 troops while the Empress Taitu raised 6,000. This Army also included troops raised by regional governors such as the future father of the Emperor Haile Selassie, Ras Tafari Makonnen who commanded 12,000 troops.
Equipment was also greatly improved with in excess of 70,000 modern rifles and 5 million rounds of ammunition being available for the battle of Adwa not including artillery. This mobilization was not without problems and delays and this gave the Italians time to become established.

The Italian forces were led by General Oreste Baraterie. His plan was to engage the Ethiopians in piecemeal battles and carve them up without facing their main force in a set piece battle. The Ethiopians on the other hand planned to use their advantage in infantry and artillery to smash the main Italian force in one battle, Menelik carefully build his alliance of princes but knew that he needed a decisive battle as he might not be able to hold the alliance together for a long protracted campaign. Ethiopian tactics and strategy were based on their own history and terrain and this was largely unknown to the Italians, so basing their ideas on the British experience the Italians expected to face a force one third of the size of Menelik's Army.

By early 1896 both sides were running out of time, the Ethiopians living off the land, the Italian general under political pressure to act. Baraterie lacked confidence and this he displayed with a meeting with his officers on 29th February, present were brigadiers Matteo Albertone, Giuseppe Arimondi, Giuseppe Ellena and Vittorio Dabormida. During the meeting many of the officers argued for an attack and Baraterie finally decided to go ahead after several hours. The Italian forces were made up of around 18,000 infantry and 56 artillery guns, but several thousand Italian troops were allocated to supply duties and the remaining force included many inexperienced troops and some Eritrean lead by Italian officers, equipment was poor and morale low.

Menelik's forces are likely to have numbered in excess of 100,000, the majority being riflemen but also a large number of lance armed cavalry. The Italian battle plan was for 3 columns which could provide fire support to each other but overnight they become separated and were several miles apart in rugged terrain. The battle was a bloody affair with the Italians fighting hard despite being out numbered. Slowly but surely the greater Ethiopian numbers had their toll. Albertone's column broke first and then Dabormida's column was cut off and fell back. Brigadier Dabormida now made a fatal error as he retreated back into a narrow valley where Ethiopian lancers wiped them out, his body was never recovered. The last of the invading army was slowly destroyed and by mid day the battle was finished, over 7,000 Italians died with the Ethiopians suffering a similar number of casualties. The Italians taken prisoner were treated well but Ethiopian troops (around 800) who had fought for the Italians were mutilated with their right hands and left feet being cut off.

The battle proved to be a crushing defeat and the Ethiopians followed up, driving the retreating Italians into Eritrea and out of the area entirely. The Treaty of Addis Abba on 26th October 1896 ended the war and the Italians recognised Ethiopian independence. The Italians did not give up on the idea of an Africa Empire and tried again under Benito Mussolini in the 1930s this time establishing their control before being driven off. In the aftermath of that defeat the Ethiopians freed Eritrea and returned it to Ethiopian control..


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgpjteJnzQ4

*another NLder posted it in the music section months ago. thought i'd share it here

KidStranglehold: [size=16pt]Toussaint Louverture(Haitian)[/size]

the man!!!

*Kails*:
[size=18pt]The Battle of Adwa[/size] (also called Adowa and Adua) was fought over two days (1st / 2nd March) between Ethiopian forces under Emperor Menelik II and invading Italian forces, and was the deciding battle in the First Italo-Ethiopian war and a turning point in modern African history with a European Colonial power being defeated and Ethiopia being recognized as a sovereign nation state by the European powers.

As the scramble for Africa came to an end Italy was allocated Ethiopia but just needed to take control. Ethiopia was largely unknown to Europeans who were aware of the coastal areas due to trade but the central highlands had resisted any attempts to spread European influence. The Italians wrongly assumed that Ethiopia was made up of rival tribes and thought it would be a quick victory for their 20,000 strong invasion forces, only to face a united country with a much larger army.
Emperor Menelik II had swept away old fashioned recruiting systems which had led to defeat by British forces previously and replaced them with much better organisation and supply. With a better organised economy the Ethiopian Emperor had greatly increased his ability to raise and equip an army and he reacted quickly when the Italian plans became known. Within two months he had raised 100,000 troops while the Empress Taitu raised 6,000. This Army also included troops raised by regional governors such as the future father of the Emperor Haile Selassie, Ras Tafari Makonnen who commanded 12,000 troops.
Equipment was also greatly improved with in excess of 70,000 modern rifles and 5 million rounds of ammunition being available for the battle of Adwa not including artillery. This mobilization was not without problems and delays and this gave the Italians time to become established.

The Italian forces were led by General Oreste Baraterie. His plan was to engage the Ethiopians in piecemeal battles and carve them up without facing their main force in a set piece battle. The Ethiopians on the other hand planned to use their advantage in infantry and artillery to smash the main Italian force in one battle, Menelik carefully build his alliance of princes but knew that he needed a decisive battle as he might not be able to hold the alliance together for a long protracted campaign. Ethiopian tactics and strategy were based on their own history and terrain and this was largely unknown to the Italians, so basing their ideas on the British experience the Italians expected to face a force one third of the size of Menelik's Army.

By early 1896 both sides were running out of time, the Ethiopians living off the land, the Italian general under political pressure to act. Baraterie lacked confidence and this he displayed with a meeting with his officers on 29th February, present were brigadiers Matteo Albertone, Giuseppe Arimondi, Giuseppe Ellena and Vittorio Dabormida. During the meeting many of the officers argued for an attack and Baraterie finally decided to go ahead after several hours. The Italian forces were made up of around 18,000 infantry and 56 artillery guns, but several thousand Italian troops were allocated to supply duties and the remaining force included many inexperienced troops and some Eritrean lead by Italian officers, equipment was poor and morale low.

Menelik's forces are likely to have numbered in excess of 100,000, the majority being riflemen but also a large number of lance armed cavalry. The Italian battle plan was for 3 columns which could provide fire support to each other but overnight they become separated and were several miles apart in rugged terrain. The battle was a bloody affair with the Italians fighting hard despite being out numbered. Slowly but surely the greater Ethiopian numbers had their toll. Albertone's column broke first and then Dabormida's column was cut off and fell back. Brigadier Dabormida now made a fatal error as he retreated back into a narrow valley where Ethiopian lancers wiped them out, his body was never recovered. The last of the invading army was slowly destroyed and by mid day the battle was finished, over 7,000 Italians died with the Ethiopians suffering a similar number of casualties. The Italians taken prisoner were treated well but Ethiopian troops (around 800) who had fought for the Italians were mutilated with their right hands and left feet being cut off.

The battle proved to be a crushing defeat and the Ethiopians followed up, driving the retreating Italians into Eritrea and out of the area entirely. The Treaty of Addis Abba on 26th October 1896 ended the war and the Italians recognised Ethiopian independence. The Italians did not give up on the idea of an Africa Empire and tried again under Benito Mussolini in the 1930s this time establishing their control before being driven off. In the aftermath of that defeat the Ethiopians freed Eritrea and returned it to Ethiopian control..


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgpjteJnzQ4

*another NLder posted it in the music section months ago. thought i'd share it here

Thanks for posting!

Anyone have Usman dan Fodio?

KidStranglehold: Ashanti Warriors


Ashanti-Anglo Wars:

Of the many scattered imperial, inter-state, or civil conflicts which comprise the martial history of Africa, most certainly the longest and drawn out conquests & military actions were the wars waged in the Gold Coast, by the British Empire in what is now the Republic of Ghana in West Africa.
[img]http://1.bp..com/-S2vGEC3xccg/UPjoNjCkHyI/AAAAAAAADE4/5O-Bj00aHN0/s400/Ashanti+War.jpg[/img]

Of the most powerful tribes and cultures, the Asante Empire (alternatively Ashanti or Ashantee) becomes arguably the most powerful military power in all of Africa’s history, perhaps only challenged by the Zulu of South Africa and maybe even the Mahdist warriors of Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia in the late 1890's.

Starting in the early 1700’s with King Osei Tutu and continuing with his successor Opoku Ware, the Asante Empire with its capital at Kumasi, were unquestionably the strongest military presence in West Africa in the 1700’s and 1800’s. Eventually they would only be rivaled by a modern British Army who campaigned in 1873-1874.

One major factor in the Asante’s dominance over their Empire was the amount of muskets that they were able to trade for with their countries great wealth in gold, which was used as a status symbol amongst the royalty and upper classes of the Asante.

Trading with Europeans, Arabs, and Asians (Malaysians, Indians, Chinese) who came to West Africa in search of slaves, gold, and plunder beginning in the late 1400’s with the Portuguese and continuing with the Dutch and the later the British, who established a protectorate in 1821 in part due to the Act of Parliament which outlawed the Slave Trade in 1807 (outlawing slavery in 1833).

Britain’s long standing war with the Asante came about in the midst of the great imperial age in which most of Europe brutally carved up Africa for colonial-economic interests. The Gold Coast was no exception and the British were careful to appease the Asante Empire with treaties of ‘friendship’ in 1817 and open trade into the 1860’s.

To highlight the scale of the Gold Coast musket trade, Britain alone sold over 52,000 guns plus 2 million pounds of gunpowder in just 1829, in the 1830’s the Asante empire place orders for tens of thousands of muskets to the Dutch to further their advantage against their neighboring enemies in the Gold Coast. Together with the slave trade, and the world’s appetite for gold, firearms sales were pivotal to the growing conflict that developed between Queen Victoria’s Empire and the Empire of the Asante Kings.

Militarily speaking the Asante dominated their native African foes to the northern tribes and the Fante tribal confederacy to the south because of their firearms. They became the only African empire of the 1800’s to employ large numbers of musket/rifle firing soldiers who could fire in volley or at least bring sustained fire at enemies very close when commanded to by their tribal officers and royal generals.

Though renowned for their discipline, and for their fighting prowess & courage like the Zulu of 1879, the Asante of 1873-1874 like the Zulu fives years later were dreadfully inaccurate with their firearms seeing as most were outdated. Even worse they fired antique musket balls ignited by inferior and sometimes volatile cheap gunpowder sold to them by opportunistic European traders.



Opposing force, British Army 1823-1874

Throughout the most critical and major uprisings of the Anglo-Asante Wars 1823 to 1874, the British army as a case study of imperial armies is nothing short of fascinating. Just as the Asante warriors are fascinating for their unique cultural and social identities as they relate to warfare, the British army was a product of its own diverse and somewhat close knit military system that held the queen, the regiment, the officers, and then lastly the enlisted man in highest esteem.

The British Army of the first Anglo-Asante War was essentially a Napoleonic force under the governor general of Sierra Leone Sir Charles McCarthy. Later in the Third Anglo-Asante War and into the Zulu War, the British army, at least its land forces were markedly different institutions, beginning to modernize and move away from the old way of military thinking that dominated the English military branches from 1799-c.1855. Still however "old ways die hard" and the change was moderate, only completely changing into middle of the Great War in 1915-1916.

One very ironic commonality which can be found in the history of the British Army throughout the imperial age is that very few of the fighting men were indeed British by birth in many of the regiments on campaign. The majority were Welsh, Scots, Irish, Canadian, Australian, New Zealanders, Indian, Sikh, West Indian, or any number of differing cultural and ethnic backgrounds recruited as levies, private soldiers, and commissioned & career officers for service in Her Majesties armed forces, during the many campaigns of Queen Victoria’s reign 1837-1901.

Sir Charles McCarthy (b.1764-1824), an Irishman, killed in the first great Asante victory over the British near the Pra River in 1824, represents the two separate, unequal, and markedly different groups of the British army during the imperial age. He was both a gentleman officer but somewhat of an outsider since he was Irish born. Regardless he was a well respected officer who had served a number of positions in Africa before being elected Governor of Sierra Leon.

Having supreme confidence that his numerically inferior forces could defeat the Asante in the field, Sir Charles divided his forces (the great equalizer in imperialist/colonialist conflicts from 1800-1900) then blundered into an ambush trying to find his other columns. In a bloody assault which showcased the signature battle tactic of the Asante Empire’s forces, over 180 British army soldiers lay dead, more than 80 were wounded many dieing of wounds later.

With few of his men escaping the carnage, Sir Charles shot himself rather than be taken alive, the Asante apparently beheading him and then cutting out his heart and consuming it. (H.J. Ricketts, Narrative of the Ashantee (Asante) War, London:1831). As was the tradition in many African warrior cultures of the era, if a slain enemy had fought bravely an organ was consumed from the courageous warrior to imbibe the living with even more power, a frightful image then as it is now, an important part of the battlefield psyche of this era and if exaggerated in use and practice.

Wolseley's campaign marked the change from the Napoleonic style army of Sir Charles era, to a more professional and prepared force led by younger, more ambitious officers who had studied military tactics and strategy scientifically as opposed to classically. These read histories of more modern conflicts like the American Civil War 1861-1865, and former accounts of explorers and scouts to familiarize themselves with the Gold Coast specifically in 1872-1873.

However the men and officers of the Imperial Age still looked down on the warriors of Africa during this era, known by imperialist officers and veterans at home in the years after as 'Dark' or 'Darkest' Africa for the imagery of savagery and violence conjured up by the sometimes blatant racist attitudes taken towards African enemies and allies (native levies, trained volunteers) during the Imperial Age.

Read more here:
http://warfarehistorian..com/2012/10/anglo-asante-wars-1824-1906-hundred.html

Man I plan on writing a novel on the Ashanti-Anglo wars. The Ashanti's were like the most bad*ss and unbeatable fighting force in Africa during that time. You know you are bad*ss when you beat the British in five wars. I think the Zulu's are way overrated and are given way too much credit. The Ashanti's did way better against the British than the Zulu's....

Amen to that! I often wonder why you never hear anything about the Ashante. You are the first like-minded person I've seen.

Ekumeku Movement

[img]http://img1.nairaland.com/attachments/865957_ekumeku20statue_jpg5f5409ea23b52ef5da7e3f3f94b97b82[/img]

The Ekumeku Movement consisted of a series of uprisings against the rising power of the Royal Niger Company of the British Empire in the Anioma communities of the Lower Niger River. The British penetration of Nigeria met with various forms of resistance throughout the country. In the south, the British had to fight many wars, in particular the wars against the Ijebu (a Yoruba group) in 1892, the Aro of Eastern Igboland in 1901–1902, and from 1883–1914, the Anioma.

Jaja of Opobo

(1821-1891)



Born in Igboland and sold as a slave to a Bonny trader at the age of twelve, he was named Jubo Jubogha by his first master. He was later sold to Chief Alali, the head of the Opubo Annie Pepple Royal House. Called Jaja by the British, this gifted and enterprising individual eventually became one of the most powerful men in the eastern Niger Delta.

The Niger Delta, where the Niger empties itself into the Gulf of Guinea in a system of intricate waterways, was the site of unique settlements called city-states.

From the fifteenth to the eighteenth century, Bonny, like the other city-states, gained its wealth from the profits of the slave trade. Here, an individual could attain prestige and power through success in business and, as in the case of Jaja, a slave could work his way up to head of state. The House was a socio-political institution and was the basic unit of the city-state.

In the nineteenth century—after the abolition of the slave trade in 1807—the trade in slaves was supplanted by the trade in palm oil, which was so vibrant that the region was named the Oil Rivers area.

The Houses in Bonny and other city-states controlled both the internal and external palm oil trade because the producers in the hinterland were forbidden to trade directly with the Europeans on the coast; the Europeans never left the coast for fear of malaria.

Astute in business and politics, Jaja became the head of the Anna Pepple House, extending its activities and influence by absorbing other houses, increasing operations in the hinterland and augmenting the number of European contacts. A power struggle ensued among rival factions in the houses at Bonny leading to the breakaway of the faction led by Jaja. He established a new settlement, which he named Opobo. He became King Jaja of Opobo and declared himself independent of Bonny.

Strategically located between Bonny and the production areas of the hinterland, King Jaja controlled trade and politics in the delta. In so doing, he curtailed trade at Bonny and fourteen of the eighteen Bonny houses moved to Opobo.

In a few years, he had become so wealthy that he was shipping palm oil directly to Liverpool. The British consul could not tolerate this situation. Jaja was offered a treaty of "protection", in return for which the chiefs usually surrendered their sovereignty. After Jaja's initial opposition, he was reassured, in vague terms, that neither his authority nor the sovereignty of Opobo would be threatened.

Jaja continued to regulate trade and levy duties on British traders, to the point where he ordered a cessation of trade on the river until one British firm agreed to pay duties. Jaja refused to comply with the consul's order to terminate these activities, despite British threats to bombard Opobo. Unknown to Jaja, the Scramble for Africa had taken place and Opobo was part of the territories allocated to Great Britain. This was the era of gunboat diplomacy, where Great Britain used her naval power to negotiate conditions favorable to the British.

Lured into a meeting with the British consul aboard a warship, Jaja was arrested and sent to Accra, where he was summarily tried and found guilty of "treaty breaking" and "blocking the highways of trade".

He was deported to St. Vincent, West Indies and four years later, he died en route to Nigeria after he was permitted to return.

Ironically, Jaja's dogged insistence on African independence and effective resistance exposed British imperialism and made him the first victim of foreign territorial intrusion in West Africa. The fate of Jaja reverberated through the entire Niger delta. Amazed at this turn of events, the other delta chiefs quickly capitulated.

In addition, the discovery of quinine as the cure for malaria enabled the British traders to bypass the middlemen and deal directly with the palm oil producers, thus precipitating the decline of the city-states.

King Jaja's downfall ensured a victory for British supremacy, paving the way for the eventual imposition of the colonial system in this region by the end of the century.

Joseph Cinque


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSx9tjj_jyY

scenes from the movie "Amistad"
(WARNING: they are graphic!!)

The middle Passage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMliaXlKxow

The Revolt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ena0xfW0_Lo

[size=18pt]Joseph Cinque[/size]



Cinqué was born c. 1814 in what is now Sierra Leone. His exact date of birth remains unknown. He was a rice farmer, married, with three children, when he was captured illegally by African slave traders in 1839, sold to Portuguese slave traders, and imprisoned on the Portuguese slave ship Tecora, in violation of treaties prohibiting international slave trade. Cinqué was taken to Cuba, where he was sold with 110 others to Spaniards José Ruiz and Pedro Montez.

The Spaniards transported the captives on the schooner Amistad, with the intention of selling them as slaves in Cuba for work at sugar plantations. On June 30, Cinqué led a revolt, killing the captain and the cook of the ship; two slaves also died, and two sailors escaped. The Africans took prisoner Ruiz and Montez, the merchants who had made the purchase, and demanded that they direct the ship back to Sierra Leone. Instead, at night, they directed the navigator in the opposite direction, towards the Americas, in the hope of attracting the attention of one of their fellow Spaniards who would save their ship and regain control. However, the ship vacillated between the coasts of the United States and Africa. After about two months, Amistad reached United States waters near Long Island. Members of the USS Washington boarded the vessel. When they discovered what had happened (according to the Spaniards), they charged the Africans with mutiny and murder, and took them to New Haven, Connecticut to await trial.

The two Spaniards claimed that the Africans were already slaves in Cuba at the time of their purchase and were therefore legal property. Interpreters from Mende to English were found, who enabled the Africans to tell their story to attorneys and the court. Cinqué served as the group's informal representative.

After the case was ruled in favor of the Africans in the district and circuit courts, the case was appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States. In March 1840, the Supreme Court ruled that the Africans mutinied to regain their freedom after being kidnapped and sold illegally. The advocacy of former U.S. President John Quincy Adams, together with Roger Sherman Baldwin, was critical to the Africans' defense. The court ordered the Africans freed and returned to Africa, if they wished. This decision was against the protests of President Martin Van Buren who worried about relations with Spain and implications for domestic slavery. Cinqué and the other Africans reached their homeland in 1842.

In Sierra Leone, Cinqué was faced with civil war. He and his company maintained contact with the local mission for a while, but Cinqué left to trade along the coast. Little is known of his later life, and rumors circulated. Some maintained that he had moved to Jamaica.[2]

Others held that he had become a merchant or a chief, perhaps trading in slaves himself.[3] The latter charge derived from oral accounts from Africa cited by the twentieth-century author William A. Owens, who claimed that he had seen letters from AMA missionaries suggesting Cinqué was a slave trader.

Although some of the Africans associated with the Amistad probably did engage in the slave trade upon their return, most historians agree that the allegations of Cinqué's involvement are not substantiated.[4] A dying Cinqué was said to have returned to the mission in 1879, where he requested and received a Christian burial.[5]


A print of Cinqué that appeared in The Sun on August 31, 1839

Sorry I've been away but life got & still is serious. That said, if I don't post this now I wont get around to it for a bit, lose the info, or simply forget.
.

Virgin island Fire burn Queens

1878 Labor Riot on St. Croix, also known as Fireburn

---

Traveling in Denmark for research, Sen. Wayne James has uncovered thousands of pages of 130 year old records of the 1878 Fireburn labor revolt in the Danish Provincial Archives and Danish Maritime museum, shedding new light on this significant but poorly documented events in Virgin Islands history.
According to a statement from James's office, the documents include images of the ship "Thea," which carried the four "queens" of the Fireburn: Susanna "Bottom Belly" Abrahamsen, Mary Thomas, Axeline Salomon and Mathilde McBean, to Copenhagen in 1882, where they would be imprisoned at the women's prison in Christianshavn for their roles in the revolt that set fire to much of the west end of the island before being violently suppressed by the Danish military.
The documents also reveal the long-forgotten fact that three men were also sent to Denmark for their roles in the insurrection; James Emanuel "Mannie" Benjamin, Joseph Bowel and Edward Lewis, all of whom served their sentences at Horsen's Men's Prison in Denmark, James said.
"The new find is invaluable," James said. "Many of the gaping holes in the Fireburn story are beginning to close. Finding new information leads to new questions and the new questions lead to new answers. The entire process is beautiful."
James first heard of the 1878 Fireburn story as a young boy when his father described the events as told to him by his paternal grandmother, who was born at Estate Annaly in 1861 and saw the Fireburn firsthand.
"From that day, the story entered my soul and has been a part of me ever since," James said.
In 2004, while also poring over original archival material in Denmark, James found there were four women organizers or "queens" of the Fireburn, not three as commonly believed. While combing through the archives at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Frederiksted, he found Thomas died in 1905 and was buried in the Williams Delight plantation cemetery.
Queen Mary Highway on St. Croix is named for Thomas.
The newly uncovered documents will have to be identified, catalogued, copied and translated - a time-consuming process, James said.
"From these documents we will glean the true history of Fireburn, not the myths, half truths and outright lies," James said. "The documents will bring us close to the real story. And when we find it we need to rewrite the history books."
Right now James' research is focused on uncovering photographs of the four queens,.
"When the queens arrived in Copenhagen in 1882 - four years after Fireburn, their arrival was noted by the Danish print media," James said. "I am convinced that some Danish photographer would have found four exotic black women who burned a Danish colony in 1878 to have been interesting subjects for a photograph. So the work continues and I don’t think it will end anytime soon."
James is still in Denmark, returning this Saturday and could not be reached for comment

---

Despite a rainy afternoon and a stormy evening sky, hundreds gathered in Frederiksted Friday celebrating the 132nd anniversary of the 1878 Fireburn labor revolt, an event which marked the beginning of the end of near serf-like legal status for black workers on St. Croix.

Ras Lumumba of St. Croix blew calls on the conch shell as the crowd slowly gathered after dusk inside and around the United Caribbean Association, adjacent to Buddhoe Park and Fort Frederik. UCA has been commemorating the day for the past 37 years. Once again, as he has for years now, radio host and historian Mario Moorhead retold some of the history leading up to the tragic but pivotal event in Virgin Islands' history and there was a performance of a short play about the events. Moorhead, a founder of UCA, recounted how from Emancipation in 1848 until after the Fireburn three decades later, the date Oct. 1 marked the end of a plantation laborer's contract, giving the laborer the ability to contract on a different plantation for the next year. The rest of the year, laborers were not allowed to leave their plantation without permission.

Many of those in the audience have been coming to the annual celebration for years, but there were plenty of first timers too.

"I've seen lots of new faces in the audience this year," said Elizabeth Pichardo, a psychology student at the University of the Virgin Islands. "There were ten or more Spanish speakers too, which is good to see. Everyone can use a bit more understanding of our history."

After Moorhead spoke, UCA members Wala, Asheba and others performed an original play by Richard Schrader Sr. entitled "1878: Queen Mary and Dem" that presents the events leading up to the Fireburn from the perspective of the several "queens" who are credited with instigating and organizing the uprising. The play is fast becoming a Fireburn tradition in Frederiksted. Dozens of young children and quite a few teenagers filled many of the chairs, listening raptly to the play, then to poetry and other original spoken performances recalling the struggles of their St. Croix forefathers. As many more children were running around outside, playing while their elders kept watch.

"The same problems we had back then are the ones we still face today," said Wala, after the play ended. "The injustices of the government continue and as a people we have to come together to change our situation."

Afterwards, the crowd marched to the beating of drums through the streets of Frederiksted with torches in hand in a peaceful reenactment of those fateful events of 1878.




Crucians march in Frederiksted to mark the Fireburn revolt.

Every year after 1848 employers promised better wages and working conditions but never delivered. Although technically no longer enslaved, workers' movements were highly restricted and in some respects working conditions were actually worse than before. In slave times, slaves were regularly punished by the cutting off of a foot or slicing off of a tongue, and work days were often 12 to 16 hours. But even after Emancipation, the working populace was heavily controlled and restricted and workers could not even leave their neighborhoods and go to Christiansted without a pass. Black workers could only leave the plantation once a year, on Oct. 1 - referred to as Contract Day, to enter into a new contract at a new plantation. The only exceptions to the restrictive labor laws, the only places blacks could live if they were not working on a plantation were areas called Free Gut in both Frederiksted and Christiansted, where some tradesmen and others eked out a living and a handful owned small shops, Moorhead said.

Tensions and frustrations rose over the decades after Emancipation and on Contract Day in 1878 four women on St. Croix, traditionally called queens, organized a revolt to demand all plantations pay the same or better than the St. Croix Central Factory and to repeal the Labor Act of 1849 that kept workers in serf-like conditions. These Virgin Islands heroines were: Queen Mary Thomas, Queen Mathilde Macbean, Susanna "Bottom Belly" Abrahamson and Axeline "Queen Agnes" Salomon.

For five days, much of the west end of the island burned. More than 120 black workers and 20 or more planters were killed before soldiers came in and crushed the revolt. Hundreds were arrested and ultimately the queens who were regarded as the ringleaders were sent off to prison in Denmark. But the die was cast, the labor acts repealed and wages and conditions improved a little, setting the stage for later V.I. labor heroes like D. Hamilton Jackson a few decades later.


[img]http://4.bp..com/-RhHkaUIYyIY/T5inxFqJ7cI/AAAAAAAAAvk/ZpahZW4uZJU/s640/SANY0100.JPG[/img]


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mh4lrp8JReU

Bump...

Maqoma
Maqoma was the greatest Xhosa warrior, guerilla general and leader of the nineteenth century.



In the annals of frontier military history Maqoma is best remembered for keeping the frustrated governor 'boxed up' in Fort Cox between Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve 1850. He also managed to frustrate Colonel Henry Somerset's several attempts to break the siege of Fort Cox.

Particularly memorable in that connection was Maqoma's daringly successful attack on Somerset's patrol on Sunday 29 December 1850 resulting in a desperate hand-to-hand struggle between officers.and men of Colonel Yarborough's 91st Regiment and Nguni warriors in a thorny valley at the foot of Mount Sandile, where twenty-three British officers and men were found the following day in the deadly embrace of their foes Later, in 1856, Maqoma, with evident admiration, praised Yarborough's men saying, "They died fighting and cursing to the last". On that.occasion Maqoma's contempt for Somerset, who a few days after the fore-mentioned engagement was promoted to Major-General, was apparently "as hearty and sincere".

http://museum.za.net/index.php/displays/xhosa-gallery/38-maqoma

http://home.earthlink.net/~cyberkiwi/soldiers/scenario11.html

Moshoeshoe I - Paramount Chief of Lesotho

Reign
1822 – 18 January 1870




Wars
Moshoeshoe signed a treaty with the British Governor, Sir George Thomas Napier. Among the provisions of this treaty was the annexation of a tract of land (now called the Orange River Sovereignty) that many Boers had settled. The outraged Boers were suppressed in a brief skirmish in 1848, but remained bitter at both the British and the Sotho.

The situation erupted in 1851. A British force was defeated by the Sotho army at Kolonyama, touching off an embarrassing war for the British. After repulsing another British attack in 1852, Moshoeshoe sent an appeal to the British commander that allowed him to save face. Once again, diplomacy saved the Sotho kingdom. After a final defeat of the Tloka in 1853, Moshoeshoe reigned supreme.

However, the British pulled out of the region in 1854, causing the de facto formation of two independent states: the Boer Orange Free State and the Sotho Kingdom.

In 1858 Moshoeshoe defeated the Boers in the Free State-Basotho War and in 1865 Moshoeshoe lost a great portion of the western lowlands. The last war in 1867 ended only when the British and Moshoeshoe appealed to Queen Victoria, who agreed to make Basutoland a British protectorate in 1868. The British were eager to check Boer advances, and Moshoeshoe, with advice from Eugene Casalis, realized that continued pressure from the Boers would lead to the
destruction of his kingdom.

In 1869, the British signed a treaty at Aliwal[disambiguation needed] with the Boers. It defined the boundaries of Basutoland and later Lesotho; those boundaries have not changed. The arable land west of the Caledon River remained in Boer hands, and is referred to as the Lost or Conquered Territory. This effectively reduced Moshoeshoe's kingdom to half its previous size

Legacy
Grave of Moshoeshoe I atop Thaba Bosiu. Although he had ceded much territory, Moshoeshoe never suffered a major military defeat and retained most of his kingdom and all of his culture. His death in 1870 marked the end of the traditional era and the beginning of the modern colonial period. Moshoeshoe Day is a national holiday in Lesotho celebrated every year on March 11 to commemorate the day of Moshoeshoe's death.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshoeshoe_I

African warriors who became slaves? lmao


The only african Warrirors are in Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea

Ajuran: African warriors who became slaves? lmao


The only african Warrirors are in Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea

Sorry but my people took on three superpowers(French, Spanards, British) in their prime with an inexperienced army and defeated all of them. Because of the French losing, they basically lost most of the new world and America was able to emerge as a regional power. They also took on the USA when they invaded Haiti 1930.

Show me Somalis, Ethiopians or Eritreans doing something like that?

@ZZar

Thanks for contributing.

KidStranglehold:

Sorry but my people took on three superpowers(French, Spanards, British) in their prime with an inexperienced army and defeated all of them. Because of the French losing, they basically lost most of the new world and America was able to emerge as a regional power. They also took on the USA when they invaded Haiti 1930.

Show me Somalis, Ethiopians or Eritreans doing something like that?

@ZZar

Thanks for contributing.

and all your fighting ended in ur people being slaves. lmao

Ajuran:


and all your fighting ended in ur people being slaves. lmao

Again my people were NOT enslaved. We actually were the FIRST black republic and inpendent while the rest of Africa(no offense to Africans) were colonized, including you Somalis.

KidStranglehold:

Again my people were NOT enslaved. We actually were the FIRST black republic and inpendent while the rest of Africa(no offense to Africans) were colonized, including you Somalis.

what country are u from again?

Ajuran:


what country are u from again?

He is Haitian

Fulaman198:

He is Haitian

negroid?

Ajuran:

negroid?

Yes, he is black/noir

Fulaman198:

Yes, he is black/noir

i see his a negroid. Very well then.

So you people are really gonna let this attention wh**e derail this beautiful thread? Whatever happened to 'ignore' and 'hide post'?

Radoillo: So you people are really gonna let this attention wh**e derail this beautiful thread? Whatever happened to 'ignore' and 'hide post'?

Please don't call me a wh0re, as I don't sleep with every girl, only the ones that are not black.

I am contributing to this thread, I am a somali warrior.

@Ajuran can you stop tainting our name, I very much doubt you are Somali.

When KidStranglehold challenged you and asked you to post about the Horners most dealiest warriors, you failed to mention Imam Ahmad Ibn Ibrahim Al Ghazi(arguably the best Somali warrior ever), the Ajuuraan House of Gareen(Sultans) and their naval wars against the Portuguese and the Oromo. Nor did you mention how they were the only hydraulic African empire in the medeval times and how they along with the Omani forces temporarily liberated other Africans along the Eastern coast. You failed to mention how the Ajuuraan defeated the famous Portuguese explorer/commander Tristao Da Cunha and how he fled to Socotra because his army were left in tatters. You were reduced to silly insults since you couldn't back up your claim that Somalis and Ethiopians are the deadliest African warriors.

Why did you call yourself Ajuran anyway? you are not of the Ajuuraan clan and you know nothing about them answer that!

You are not worthy of the Somali name warya! Bounce!
I'll take over from here onwards.

@KidStranglehold fantastic thread keep it up please and ignore the fake Somali.

yousuf12: @Ajuran can you stop tainting our name, I very much doubt you are Somali.

When KidStranglehold challenged you and asked you to post about the Horners most dealiest warriors, you failed to mention Imam Ahmad Ibn Ibrahim Al Ghazi(arguably the best Somali warrior ever), the Ajuuraan House of Gareen(Sultans) and their naval wars against the Portuguese and the Oromo. Nor did you mention how they were the only hydraulic African empire in the medeval times and how they along with the Omani forces temporarily liberated other Africans along the Eastern coast. You failed to mention how the Ajuuraan defeated the famous Portuguese explorer/commander Tristao Da Cunha and how he fled to Socotra because his army were left in tatters. You were reduced to silly insults since you couldn't back up your claim that Somalis and Ethiopians are the deadliest African warriors.

Why did you call yourself Ajuran anyway? you are not of the Ajuuraan clan and you know nothing about them answer that!

You are not worthy of the Somali name warya! Bounce!
I'll take over from here onwards.

@KidStranglehold fantastic thread keep it up please and ignore the fake Somali.

Thanks and I will ignore him for now since everyone wants this thread back on topic..

And do not worry, he has not tainted my views on Somalis at all. I have actually met plenty on cook Somalis on learn who taught me a lot on their history and were glad to share it with everyone. I actually respect Somali history like every other history. But its a shame that only me and others and not Ajuran/somalia9 had to post horner warriors and not him.

But anyways...PLEASE post Somali warriors. I know theres a lot you and can actually give us more details unlike Ajuran/somalia9.

@Fulaman

Haitian/African American. I was actually born in America, but I would like to visit Haiti.

yousuf12: @Ajuran can you stop tainting our name, I very much doubt you are Somali.

When KidStranglehold challenged you and asked you to post about the Horners most dealiest warriors, you failed to mention Imam Ahmad Ibn Ibrahim Al Ghazi(arguably the best Somali warrior ever), the Ajuuraan House of Gareen(Sultans) and their naval wars against the Portuguese and the Oromo. Nor did you mention how they were the only hydraulic African empire in the medeval times and how they along with the Omani forces temporarily liberated other Africans along the Eastern coast. You failed to mention how the Ajuuraan defeated the famous Portuguese explorer/commander Tristao Da Cunha and how he fled to Socotra because his army were left in tatters. You were reduced to silly insults since you couldn't back up your claim that Somalis and Ethiopians are the deadliest African warriors.

Why did you call yourself Ajuran anyway? you are not of the Ajuuraan clan and you know nothing about them answer that!

You are not worthy of the Somali name warya! Bounce!
I'll take over from here onwards.

@KidStranglehold fantastic thread keep it up please and ignore the fake Somali.

am somali and already mentioned ahmed gurey