British & Sugar - Jamaican History (Part 3)

Jamaica was no longer of secondary significance as it had been under Spanish rule. It was now considered a treasured jewel in the British Crown “lying in the very belly of all commerce.” British Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell saw its great potential and offered land to British settlers, enticing 1600 new Brits to settle in Jamaica.

Riches came flooding in from pirates, who used Port Royal as their home base. Kingston became known as one of the richest and nefarious cities in the entire world. That was, until 1692 when the great earthquake would shatter two-thirds of the city of Port Royal. The sinking of Port Royal symbolized the end of major piracy in the Caribbean.

The end of piracy was also the genesis of mass importation of African slaves. In Jamaica, they came mostly from the Coromantees peoples, who were originally from the Gold Coast, Benin and Mandingoes. They were used to work on the increasingly profitable British Sugar plantations as part of the triangular trade.

The triangle started with the Brits exporting goods to African Kings. The African Kings would deliver slaves to the ports in West Africa to be picked up by European ships. After being shipped across the Atlantic, the slaves would produce goods. Their finished products (sugar, tobacco, molasses & rum) would be sent back to Britain for consumption. The slaves were used as a commodity, placed in circumstances absent of human dignity.

All the while, Jamaica profited – profited from slaves and trade. When trade prospered, it was on the backs of slaves. When trade suffered because of exogenous variables (like Britain’s wars abroad), the slaves were punished. Slaves were punished by lashing, maiming and ultimately death completely at the discretion of their paternalistic European masters. Such was the nature of colonialism.

Globally, the demand for sugar soared; at times it was worth its weight in gold. Between 1720 and 1770, British demand increased 5 times. This surge in demand came from Europeans new found pleasure in jam, cookies, tea (sweetened of course) and cocoa.

I find two things ironic in this picture. First, one of Britain’s most defined traditions of afternoon tea is really adopted abroad from (maybe Canada still has hope!). Secondly, it’s ironic that something as sweet as sugar was made possible and available through something as acidic as slavery.

Jamaica was experiencing a sugar revolution and the entire country centered on its production. Really, sugar was the predominant reason people settled (by choice or force) on the island for centuries. For a while, Jamaica became the world’s largest sugar producer. Eventually, they would diversify their exports to include molasses and rum (both sugar based products), but sugar has remained a critical component of Jamaica’s economy to this day.