Moon Author's Review
Sam Sharpe was the central figure of the Christmas Rebellion of 1831 1832, which many point to as the beginning of the end of slavery in Jamaica (officially granted in 1838). Sharpe was a Baptist deacon, well respected across the deep societal divides. Despite this, Sharpe was executed in a public hanging on May 23, 1832, in what is now Sam Sharpe Square in the heart of Montego Bay. Over 300 slaves were also executed for their role in the rebellion. Sharpe had originally envisioned and promoted a peaceful rebellion of passive resistance, whereby the slaves would stage a sit-down strike until the planters agreed to pay them for their labor, in accordance with what was perceived as a royal decree from England being withheld in Jamaica. The rebelling slaves were swept up in the excitement of the hour, however, as Sharpe's lieutenants swept across the western parishes to the sound of war drums belting out from the slave villages. Only 16 white people were killed during the rebellion, but around 20 large estates were torched, and the rebellion struck fear into the heart of the "plantocracy." Sharpe took responsibility for the rebellion, relieving the white missionaries of the blame that was focused on them by the established powers of the day, including the Anglican Church (which with few isolated and notable exceptions backed the landed elite, even organizing terror squads to target the Baptist missionaries who had made it their charge to foment discontent among the slaves). The Christmas Rebellion was consequently also known as the Baptist War.
