African warfare in Bahia and Cuba 1807-1844

Location
224, Arts building, Danford Room, University of Birmingham
Dates
Tuesday 16 October 2012 (17:00-19:00)

Speaker: Manual Barcia Paz (Leeds)

During the first decades of the nineteenth century Bahia in Brazil, and the western part of the island of Cuba saw a remarkable increase in the number of instances of overt resistance by their African slave and free populations. These violent events have normally been associated with the historical developments of these two territories and with events occurring in other parts of the Americas and Europe. Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that their actors were Africans little attention has been paid to the possible impact that African historical developments may have had on these acts of resistance. In this paper I examine, using a comparative method, the simultaneous cycles of slave plots and revolts that took place in Bahia and Cuba between 1807 and 1844, highlighting the significance that West African politics and warfare had upon these events.