Memory of the World - Latin America and the Caribbean
The Book of Baptism of Slaves, 1635-1670
The Book of Baptism of Slaves is unique in Dominican ecclesiastical history and a source of valuable information regarding the nature of American slavery especially in the eastern port of the island during the 17th century The island of Hispaniola or Santo Domingo was the launching point for the processes of discovery conquest and colonisation of America from 1492 onwards The introduction of the first African slaves to the island dates to 1493 although the actual slave trade was regulated in the second decade of the 16th century first under individual licences and then under the trade and importation system denominated asiento When the sugar industry began to expand there was an increase in the slave population and the plantation system was established African slaves were at first incorporated into and later replaced the indigenous slave population and captives from other Caribbean islands and the South American mainland From the mid17th century the African slave population made up the majority of Hispaniola´s total population Slaves came from the coasts near Cape Verde and the Gulf of Guinea Already at that time the slaves rejected slavery and even mounted armed rebellions The preferred form of rebellion was the cimarronada they left the plantation to which they belonged to settle in isolated and protected places called manieles From there they raided their former masters´ properties burning and destroying the sugarcane fields and slaughtering the animals Toward the end of the 18th century the cimarronada faded away as the plantation system came to an end Although less frequent slave rebellion created the same concern and fear among Spanish and naturalborn landowners Hence they organised frequent raids against the manieles The Ocoa Maniel was attacked at midcentury and the baptismal book mentions the capture of twentyfour children during the offensive At the beginning of the 19th century the cimarronada gave way to other mechanisms of protest andor assimilation which were made possible by the growing number of freed slaves who were able to demand their freedom before the Civil Court especially when the landowners had not respected their contracts This resource allowed the free population to increase in the cities and countryside
Dominican Republic -