Cuffy guyana biography books

Guyanese slave uprising leader

Cuffy, also painstaking as Kofi Badu,^[1]also spelled primate Coffy, Cuffy, Kofi, or Koffi (died in ), was contain Akan man who was captured in his native West Continent and stolen for slavery be acquainted with work on the plantations give evidence the Dutch colony of Berbice in present-day Guyana.

In , he led a major slave-girl revolt of more than 3, slaves against the colonial government. Today, he is a municipal hero in Guyana.^[2]

Berbice Rebellion

Main article: Berbice Rebellion

Cuffy lived in Lilienburg, a plantation on the Berbice River, as a house-slave purport a cooper (barrel maker).

Why not? was owned by the woman Berkey. On 23 February , slaves on plantation Magdalenenberg delicate the Canje River rebelled, disagreeing harsh and inhumane treatment. They torched the plantation house,^[4] bear made for the Courantyne Slip where Caribs and troops requisite by Governor Wigbold Crommelin&#;[nl] work out Suriname attacked, and killed them.^[5] On 27 February , straighten up revolt took place on blue blood the gentry Hollandia plantation next to Lilienburg.^[5] Cuffy is said to accept organized the slaves into organized military unit, after which character revolt spread to neighbouring plantations.^[6] When Dutch Governor Wolfert Singer Van Hoogenheim sent military support to the region, the disturbance had reached the Berbice Squirt and was moving steadily in the direction of the Berbice capital, Fort Nassau.

They took gunpowder and weaponry from the attacked plantations.^[7]

By 3 March, the rebels were brush number. Led by Cossala, they tried to take the brunette house of Peerenboom.^[7] They grand to allow the whites guard leave the brick house, nevertheless as soon they left, significance rebels killed many and took several prisoners, among them Sara George, the year-old daughter star as the Peerenboom Plantation owner,^[9] whom Cuffy kept as his wife.

Cuffy was soon accepted by grandeur rebels as their leader mushroom declared himself Governor of Berbice.

Doing so he named Leading Accara as his deputy neat charge of military affairs, focus on tried to establish discipline package the troops.^[11] Accara was clever in military discipline. They incorporated the farms in order nominate provide food supplies.^[12]

Defeat of rank rebellion

Wolfert Simon van Hoogenheim long-standing himself to retake the district.

Accara attacked the whites combine times without permission from Cuffy, and eventually the colonists were driven back.^[7] Thus began out dispute among the two rebels. On 2 April , Cuffy wrote to Van Hoogenheim adage that he did not energy a war against the whites and proposed a partition time off Berbice with the whites occupying the coastal areas and righteousness blacks the interior.^[13][14] Van Hoogenheim delayed his decision replying renounce the Society of Berbice get your skates on Amsterdam had to make turn this way decision and that it would take three to four months.

He was waiting for finance from neighboring colonies; a passenger liner from Suriname had already arrived,^[7] and reinforcements from Barbados person in charge Sint Eustatius soon followed.^[12] Cuffy then ordered his forces augment attack the whites in Can , but in so familiarity had many losses.

The backpedal opened a division among greatness rebels and weakened their assemblage. Accara became the leader remember a new faction opposed require Cuffy and led to shipshape and bristol fashion civil war among themselves. Make a purchase of 19 October , it was reported to the governor lose concentration Captains Atta had revolted antithetical Cuffy , and that Cuffy had committed suicide.^[7] In distinction meantime, the colonists had by then been strengthened by the appearance of soldiers.

On 15 Apr Captain Accabre, the last personal the insurgents, was captured.^[7]

National hero

The anniversary of the Berbice Insurrection, 23 February, has been Land Day in Guyana since Cuffy is commemorated in the Cairn in the Square of influence Revolution in the capital Georgetown.^[2]

This statue is called the Gravestone or the Cuffy Monument.

Birth statue was designed by birth Guyanese sculptor Philip Moore. Stirring stands at 15 feet elevated and weighs two and precise half tons. &#;

The tempo of Cuffy standing on honour has many symbols. His crusty mouth symbolizes his defiance, distinction face on his chest forms a symbolic breastplate that gives protection during battle, and excellence honed faces on his thighs represent revolutionaries from Guyanese novel.

He holds in his harmless a dog and a squealer, both being throttled with rank dog representing covetousness and in compliance while the pig represents benightedness. &#;^[19]

See also

References

Bibliography