Cudjoe

Cudjoe, or Captain Cudjoe (c. 1680 – 1744),^[1] sometimes spelled Cudjo - corresponding to the Akan day name Kojo or Kwadwo - was a Maroon leader in Jamaica during the time of Nanny of the Maroons. He has been described as "the greatest of the Maroon leaders."^[2]

The Jamaican Maroons are descended from runaway slaves who established free communities in the mountains of Jamaica during the long era of slavery in the island. African slaves imported during the Spanish period may have provided the first runaways, apparently mixing with the Native American Taino or Arawak people that remained in the country. Some may have gained liberty when the English attacked Jamaica and took it in 1655, and subsequently. For about 52 years, until the 1737 peace treaty with the British rulers of the island, the Maroons stubbornly resisted conquest.

Biographical information

Cudjoe is believed (according to Maroon oral tradition) to have been the son of Quateng, a chief or omanhene in Asanteman(the land of the Asante-Akan people) or Coromantee(out dated term for "Akan") people from what is present-day Ghana. Quateng was taken captive and sold into slavery in Spanish Jamaica in the 1640s but he initiated a revolt and led his tribesmen into the mountainous interior of the island, establishing the first community of Maroons,^[1] as the runaway slaves were called, after the Spanish word cimarron, meaning "wild".

The two main Maroon groups in the 18th century were the Leeward and the Windward tribes, the former led by Cudjoe in Trelawny Town and the latter led by Queen Nanny (and later by Quao). Captain Cudjoe had endless energy and was greatly motivated to stay a free man. He was strong, courageous, and relentless. Cudjoe was also a very skillful, tactical field commander and a remarkable leader.

Battles with the British

Not only did Cudjoe successfully defend his communities, but also, similar to what Harriet Tubman would do in the nineteenth century, he freed many captives by raiding Britain’s plantations. Sometimes his raids were non-confrontational, but most times they were vicious, bloody encounters.

Before he attacked a plantation, Cudjoe would send spies among the captives to gather information from them at the markets and on the plantations. Once his spies collected sufficient evidence of the slave-owners’ plans, they sent them to Cudjoe. Then he determined the time and place of his attacks. During his strikes, Cudjoe and his men burned down mansions, destroyed cane fields and killed many whites along with faithful slaves who refused to help him.

Cudjoe’s attacks were so devastating that many of the early English settlers abandoned their plantations and returned to England. He often killed faithful slaves during these attacks because he despised them. According to one of England’s commanders on the island, General Williamson, it was commonly said, "the British rules Jamaica by day and Captain Cudjoe by night."^[3]

In an attempt to capture Cudjoe and the Maroons, British leaders built forts near Maroon communities. In addition, they formed an army of more than 1,050 soldiers to fight Cudjoe’s weapon-deficient military.

However, even with Miskito tracking specialists and a formidable army, the British were outmaneuvered by Cudjoe. As the British soldiers marched into the valley, Cudjoe’s four-sectioned forces watched them from behind the natural boundaries. When Cudjoe’s men attacked the soldiers from all sides, the crossfire surprised and debilitated them. The British soldiers fled the area and left behind guns and supplies.

For the next decade, Cudjoe caused considerable damage to the slave structure of Jamaica. When he raided, he often burned sugar cane fields, houses and barns, and he continued to kill slaves who were loyal to their masters. This latter measure put a great deal of pressure on every African captive to abide by Cudjoe’s advances. Therefore, Cudjoe’s peer-pressure tactic led the British to distrust just about every captive on the island.

Faced with a very disturbing problem, Sir Edward Trelawny (governor) weighed the possibilities. Eventually, he decided not to attack Cudjoe. He, instead, opted to make a treaty of peace with the Maroons. To carry out Governor Trelawney’s orders, a rather large army escorted Colonel Guthrie to meet with Cudjoe in Maroon territory. Once he convinced Cudjoe and his men that he would neither attack nor trick them, Cudjoe met with the colonel.

After talking for an hour or so, both men worked out a satisfactory treaty. They agreed that the British must recognize the Maroons as an independent nation; that the Maroons receive a very large tract of land and would not have to pay any taxes on it. However, Chief Cudjoe, in return for this recognition of autonomy, promised to return runaway slaves and help put down future slave rebellions.^[4] Maroon societies still exist in Jamaica today.

Cudjoe died at Nanny Town in the Blue Mountains five years after peace was concluded. He was succeeded by Accompong.^[5][1]

Legacy

Milton McFarlane, a descendant of Cudjoe, has written that it probably would have taken the British abolitionsts "twice as long [to abolish slavery] had it not been for the Maroon victory that gave the British cause to think.^[6]

Cudjoe Day is celebrated in Jamaica on the first Monday in January.^[7]

References