Boston Band negotiates peace with colonial representatives

On 22 February 1757, enslaved people at the La Paix timber plantation on the Tempati River rose in revolt. The uprising spread across plantations in the region, with cooperation between people who...

A report dated 1 April 1757 described the Tempati uprising and warned that news sent to the Netherlands should not needlessly alarm investors. The colony’s rulers faced a contradiction: the revolt...

In a letter dated 6 June 1757, former colonial officials warned of a worst-case outcome if the uprising was not suppressed. Their fears included loss of property and the possibility that Europeans...

In a letter dated 11 September 1759, Governor Crommelin again argued that peace with the Ndyuka was necessary to save the colony. The campaign to force Maroon communities back under plantation...

At a negotiation recorded on 6 January 1760, an unnamed Ndyuka spokesperson defended Maroon attacks on plantations. The surviving colonial record gives the date but not the speaker’s name. The...

On 10 October 1760, Ndyuka leaders and Dutch colonial authorities signed a treaty recognizing Ndyuka freedom and autonomy. The agreement promised supplies, but also required Ndyuka to ally with the...

A colonial record dated 20 October 1760 describes celebrations in Paramaribo following the peace treaty with the Ndyuka. The celebration reflected the colonial government’s relief after years of...

A letter dated 2 April 1761 records Boston Band addressing the issue of people fleeing slavery on plantations. The Ndyuka treaty required the return of some escapees, placing Boston and other...

In a letter dated 29 December 1761, Governor Crommelin complained about compliance with the 1760 peace treaty. The complaint shows that treaty relations remained contested and that the colonial...

A colonial archival record dated 5 February 1762 marks a successful phase in a peace mission to the Saamaka. The negotiations followed decades of conflict and an earlier failed attempt at peace....