Morant Bay

Morant Bay
	Morant Bay
	Morant Bay
Coordinates	17 ° 52 ′ N , 76 ° 24 ′ W Coordinates: 17 ° 52 ′ N , 76 ° 24 ′ W
Basic data
Country	Jamaica
county	Surrey
Parish	Saint Thomas
ISO 3166-2	JM-03
Residents	11,121 (2010)
Culture
Twin cities	Hartford Uxbridge
	Typical street scene in Morant Bay

Morant Bay is a city on the southeast coast of Jamaica . It is located at the mouth of the river of the same name. It is located in County Surrey and is the capital of the Parish Saint Thomas . In 2010 the population was 11,121 people.

history

Morant Bay is one of the most historic places in Jamaica.

In 1674, the French admiral Du Casse landed in Morant Bay. For a month he devastated the city, killing many residents and taking the slaves prisoner. Later fugitive slaves settled in the surrounding mountains. They were called Maroons and formed the Windward Maroons with comparable groups in Portland .

After slavery ended in 1834, the Morant Bay Uprising broke out in 1865 . This peasant uprising, led by Paul Bogle , marked a turning point in the island's history. The rebellion was brutally suppressed. However, it had the consequence that the constitution of the island was changed and was the cause of a controversial political debate in Great Britain . Former slaves felt disadvantaged in the distribution of land. A group of small farmers, led by Paul Bogle, moved to Spanish Town to alert Governor Eyre to their problems. However, they were not admitted. On October 11, Bogle and 200-300 of his followers armed with sticks went to the Morant Bay Courthouse for a meeting. A quickly proclaimed ban on gatherings was ignored. Some protesters started throwing stones at guards. They shot back and killed seven people, dispersing the group.

However, the group returned, burned the courthouse and killed the people who fled from it. The next day, over 2000 people had already joined the revolt. Governor Edward Eyre sent troops to the area to put down the uprising. 439 people were killed and 354, including Bogle, arrested. Most of the prisoners were later executed and over 1,000 houses were destroyed. Edward Eyre was then replaced as governor and ordered back to England. His approach to this incident sparked a heated discussion among England's well-known intellectuals in England. While people like Thomas Carlyle and Charles Dickens sided with Eyre, others around John Stuart Mill and Charles Darwin supported an allegation of murder. However, Eyre was not convicted of any crime by the British judiciary.

For the anniversary, events take place every year in Morant Bay and in the neighboring mountain village of Stony Gut .

Historical buildings

The Morant Bay Courthouse, called Morant Bay Cort House , dates back to the 18th century and was an important site during the Morant Bay Rebellion. The building was destroyed in a fire in 2007.

Not far from the court there is a stone fort from 1758.