Maroon was the name given to escaped African slaves and their descendants in the Caribbean. A large community began to flourish on the island of Jamaica, which was ruled by the Spanish at the time, from 1530 onwards after several slave revolts in the colonies of New Spain. The Spanish called them maroons, which is believed to come from the word ‘cimarron’, meaning ‘fierce’ or ‘unruly’. They were known to often ally themselves with buccaneers.
In 1655 the British conquered much of Jamaica and many slaves took advantage of the opportunity to join the maroon communities in the hills. At first, they fought the British, but later allied themselves with them against the Spanish under their leader Lubolo, finally driving the Spanish from the island in 1660. When Lubolo was later killed by another maroon leader called Juan de Serras in 1663, a war lasting decades broke out.
The British were unable to dislodge the maroons from their bases in the mountains, and in 1720 the maroons went on the offensive, attacking plantations.…