Cubah Cornwallis (died 1848) (often spelled Coubah, Couba, Cooba or Cuba) was a
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...
or "doctress" and
Obeah
Obeah, or Obayi, is an ancestrally inherited tradition of Akan witches of Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Togo and their descendants in the African diaspora of the Caribbean. Inheritors of the tradition are referred to as "obayifo" (Akan/Ghana-region s ...
woman who lived in the
colony of Jamaica
The Crown Colony of Jamaica and Dependencies was a British colony from 1655, when it was captured by the English Protectorate from the Spanish Empire. Jamaica became a British colony from 1707 and a Crown colony in 1866. The Colony was pri ...
during the late 18th and 19th century.
Early life
Little is known of her early life although records indicate that she was originally enslaved, belonging to
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
William Cornwallis
Admiral of the Red Sir William Cornwallis, (10 February 17445 July 1819) was a Royal Navy officer. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, the 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British commander at the siege of Yorktown. Cornwallis took part in a ...
,
brother of
Charles, Earl Cornwallis.
The details of her release from slavery are also not known although there are references suggesting that she and Captain Cornwallis were
lovers.
When freed she was appointed by Cornwallis as his
housekeeper whilst he remained in
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...
. On his departure, she settled permanently in
Port Royal
Port Royal is a village located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest city in the Caribbean, functioning as the centre of shipping an ...
and began her career treating sailors for the many and varied diseases and injuries they sustained. She purchased a small house which she converted into a combination of
rest home
A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of elderly or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as skilled nursing facility (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to i ...
,
hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...
and
hospital.
Famous patients
Cubah became so well known for her treatment of the sick that in 1780 when
Horatio Nelson
Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought ...
, then a captain, fell ill with
dysentery
Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complication ...
during an
expedition to
Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to ...
, he was taken to her by
Admiral Parker Parker may refer to:
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*Parker, Arizona
*Parker, Colorado
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, the
commander-in-chief of the Royal Naval forces in Jamaica.
Later she was entrusted with the treatment of
Prince William Henry, later William IV when he was stationed in the
West Indies
The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Great ...
.
The Prince was so grateful to Cubah that many years later he told the story to his wife,
Queen Adelaide
, house = Saxe-Meiningen
, father = Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
, mother = Princess Louise Eleonore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Meiningen, Saxe-Meiningen, Holy Rom ...
.
The Queen was so grateful that she sent Cubah a dress that was so expensive and beautiful that Cubah refused to wear it. She wore the dress only once in 1848 as her
funerary
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...
gown.
According to Jamaican mixed-race campaigner and author
Richard Hill, Nelson too remarked in his correspondence to friends and family how indebted he was to Cubah. Whenever a friend or colleague was despatched to Jamaica he requested that they pass his good wishes to her.
Death
Although it is not known when she was born, Cubah must have lived a long life. It is documented that she assisted in Nelson's recovery in 1780 and was, by then, already an established and respected figure on the island. Her date of death, 68 years later, is a testament to her longevity.
Herbal practice
Cubah, and other nurses in the West Indies during the period, treated patients with traditional home remedies, often mistaken for
magic,
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural ...
or
witchcraft
Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have u ...
. Many thought and misunderstood these women to be using magical practices, and they were often feared or respected or loved, depending on the "magic" they cast and the individual over whom they cast it. Their magic was little more than hygiene, a healthier diet than could have been expected on board ship and a positive attitude.
Another contemporary "doctress" of Cubah's was Sarah Adams, who also practised good hygiene and used herbal remedies throughout her long career. Adams also worked in
Port Royal
Port Royal is a village located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest city in the Caribbean, functioning as the centre of shipping an ...
, and she died in 1849. Other Jamaican doctresses of the 18th century included Mrs Grant, the mother of
Mary Seacole
Mary Jane Seacole (;Anionwu E.N. (2012) Mary Seacole: nursing care in many lands. ''British Journal of Healthcare Assistants'' 6(5), 244–248. 23 November 1805 – 14 May 1881) was a British-Jamaican nurse and businesswoman who set up t ...
, and Grace Donne, who nursed Jamaica's wealthiest planter,
Simon Taylor. Cubah Cornwallis, Mrs Grant, Grace Donne and Sarah Adams used hygienic practices long before it became one of the main planks in the reforms of
Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during the Crimean War, i ...
, in her book ''
Notes on Nursing'' in 1859.
"notes on nursing by florence nightingale"
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cornwallis, Cubah
Female wartime nurses
1848 deaths
Women of the Victorian era
People from Kingston, Jamaica
Jamaican nurses
Year of birth unknown
Obeah
19th-century Jamaican people
Free people of color
Women in war in the Caribbean
Women in 19th-century warfare