Samuel Sharpe, or Sharp (1801 – 23 May 1832), also known as Sam Sharpe, was an enslaved

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

n who was the leader of the widespread 1831–32 Baptist War

slave rebellion A slave rebellion is an armed uprising by slaves, as a way of fighting for their freedom. Rebellions of slaves have occurred in nearly all societies that practice slavery or have practiced slavery in the past. A desire for freedom and the dream o ...

(also known as the Christmas Rebellion) in Jamaica. He was proclaimed a National Hero of Jamaica on 31 March 1982 and his image is on the $50 Jamaican banknote.

Biography

Samuel Sharpe was born into slavery in the parish of St James, Jamaica, on a plantation owned by Samuel and Batty Sharpe. The Slave Return of 1832 announcing his death gave his name as Archer aka Samuel Sharpe, the son of Eve, and he was only 28 years old when he died. The Slave Return of Samuel and Jane Sharpe in 1817 showed a young 12-year-old Archer on the plantation with his mother Juda Bligom and siblings Joe (two years old) and Eliza (20 years old). He was allowed to become educated, for which he was well respected by his enslaved peers. Sharpe became a well-known preacher, leader and missionary in the Baptist Church, which had long welcomed the enslaved as members and recognized them as preachers. He was a deacon at the Burchell Baptist Church in

Montego Bay Montego Bay () is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth most populous urban area in the country, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore ...

, whose pastor was Rev. Thomas Burchell, a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

from

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Sharpe spent most of his time travelling to different parishes in Jamaica, educating the enslaved about

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

, which he believed promised freedom.

Baptist War

Where possible, the enslaved closely followed the British Parliament's discussions surrounding the abolition of slavery. In the mistaken belief that emancipation had already been granted by the Queen of India, Sharpe organised a peaceful

general strike A general strike is a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coalitions ...

across many estates in western Jamaica to protest working conditions. This took place during the harvest of sugar cane, a critical time for the plantation owners: generally the workforce had to work overtime to process the cane quickly at its peak. The Christmas Rebellion ( Baptist War) began on 27 December 1831 at the Kensington Estate. Reprisals by the plantation owners led to the rebels' burning the crops. Sharpe's originally peaceful protest turned into Jamaica's largest slave rebellion. The uprising lasted for 10 days and spread throughout the entire island, mobilizing as many as 60,000 of Jamaica's enslaved population. The colonial government used the armed Jamaican military forces and warriors from the towns of the

Jamaican Maroons Jamaican Maroons descend from Africans who freed themselves from slavery in the Colony of Jamaica and established communities of Free black people in Jamaica, free black people in the island's mountainous interior, primarily in the eastern Pari ...

to put down the rebellion, suppressing it within two weeks. Some 14 whites were killed by armed slave battalions, but more than 200 slaves were killed by troops. Afterwards, more reprisals followed. The government tried, convicted, and hanged many of the leaders, including Sharpe, in 1832. A total of 310 to 340 were executed through the judicial process, including many for purely property offences such as theft of livestock. In the months leading up to his execution, while in jail, Sharpe had several meetings with Rev. Henry Bleby, a missionary, who reported that Sharpe told him: "I would rather die upon yonder gallows than live my life in slavery." The rebellion and government response provoked two detailed Parliamentary Inquiries. The Jamaican government's severe reprisals in the aftermath of the rebellion are believed to have contributed to passage by Parliament of the

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which abolished slavery in the British Empire by way of compensated emancipation. The act was legislated by Whig Prime Minister Charl ...

and final abolition of slavery across the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

in 1838.

Legacy

* In 1982, the government of independent Jamaica proclaimed Sharpe a National Hero, with the

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

title of Rt. Excellent Samuel Sharpe. * Also in 1975, Sam Sharpe Teachers' College was founded and named in his honour in Granville, a suburb of Montego Bay. * Sharpe's image is used on the modern Jamaican $50 bill pre-2023. In 2023 this was changed to the new $500 bill. * The British jazz saxophonist Courtney Pine (of Jamaican parentage) included an instrumental composition "Samuel Sharpe" as a tribute on his 2012 album ''House of Legends''. * Sam Sharpe is referenced by

Vybz Kartel Adidja Azim Palmer (born 7 January 1976), better known as Vybz Kartel, is a Jamaican dancehall Toasting (Jamaican music), deejay. Among his various nicknames, he is referred to as Worl' Boss, Teacha and King of Dancehall. As summarized by ''Roll ...

in his 2019 song "Stand Strong". * ''Daddy Sharpe: A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Samuel Sharpe, West Indian Slave – Written by Himself, 1832'', a fictionalized account of Sharpe's life, by Fred W. Kennedy, was published in 2008."Book Launch: Fred W. Kennedy's Daddy Sharpe"
''Repeating Islands'', 6 November 2009.

References

Sources

* *

External links

''Jamaican History''
* Reid-Salmon, Delroy
''Burning for Freedom: A Theology of the Black Atlantic Struggle for Liberation''

"Trailer - Samuel Sharpe"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharpe, Samuel 1801 births 1832 deaths 19th-century Baptist ministers 19th-century Baptists 19th-century Jamaican people 19th-century slaves Jamaican Baptist ministers Jamaican Baptist missionaries Jamaican rebel slaves National Heroes of Jamaica People executed by the Colony of Jamaica by hanging People from Saint James Parish, Jamaica Baptist abolitionists