History
Colonel Kojo and Captain Guthrie
Maroons are the descendants of the remaining natives and the West African tribes brought to Jamaica during the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
In 1655, after their defeat in Santa Domingo, the British invaded Spanish ruled Jamaica, determined not to return to England empty handed. The Spaniards freed and armed their slaves to help defend the island. Eventually the Spaniards lost the war and fled to nearby Cuba.
These renegade slaves, hereafter referred to as the Maroons, fled to the mountainous interior to escape re-enslavement by the British where they were later joined by other renegade slaves. These slaves were from the extremely combative, West African Koromanti tribe who were military strategists. A certain renegade named Kojo, originating from Clarendon, gained popularity among the group of Maroons in western Jamaica.
These Maroons engaged the British in relentless guerrilla warfare against the British for decades. Ignorant of the unforgiving terrain of the Cockpit Country, the British were humiliated in the Battle of Peace Cave, where all except one British soldier were killed. A peace treaty between the Maroons and the British was signed one year later giving the Maroons freedom and autonomy.
Maroon History Links
The Mel Fisher Maritime Museum