On this day, 14 April 1816, a slave uprising known as Bussa’s rebellion, named after its leader, broke out on Easter Sunday night in Barbados. It was to be the island’s largest rebellion of enslaved Africans.
Enslaved people took advantage of the temporary freedom from work and the cover of permitted gathering for Easter festivities to organise themselves. They chose a leader on each sugarcane plantation, and were assisted by three free Black men who travelled around meeting with rebels.
The revolt began with the burning of cane fields in St Philip, and soon around 400 men and women working on over 70 other estates had joined in.
British colonial authorities declared martial law the following day, and soon suppressed the uprising. While only two whites were reported killed, 120 enslaved people were killed during the repression, with 144 executed and 132 deported in the aftermath.
Pictured is a statue of Bussa, who is today remembered as a national hero.
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