Queen Nanny did not sign the treaty

NOT MUCH is known about Queen Nanny’s early years on Earth. But the story is that she was from west Africa, from where many people were taken to the West Indies to work on various plantations under sub-human conditions.

Hundreds of the enslaved did not stay on the plantations; they fled to the hills where they establish their own villages, despite efforts to recapture them. Nanny was one of their leaders, and there are many myths associated with how Queen Nanny and her people outlasted the British, who captured Old Nanny Town in 1734 and remained there on and off until 1739.

The British armed forces were constantly under surprise attacks from the Maroons. Queen Nanny was a brilliant strategist who led her men over hills and through valleys as they fought the British. One story is that she would catch bullets with her posterior and fire them back in rapid succession at the British soldiers.

ROMANTIC ELEMENT

This is a very controversial and romantic element of the Queen Nanny story. Some people find it mythical, if not ludicrous, while others believe she really possessed powers to catch bullets with her backside.

Another legend is that Queen Nanny lured the English soldiers to stare into a boiling pot, which hypnotised them. Many researchers believe, however, that this ‘Nanny Pot’ was actually a seething pool at the foot of a high waterfall, which formed part of the natural defence in the region.

But, it was not only her military skills that Queen Nanny used to keep her people safe. With her superior knowledge of the use of herbal remedies, and spiritual practices, she was able to keep her people nourished and healthy for quite a number of years.

Another legend recounts that, when the Maroons experienced food shortages, Queen Nanny went to a place called Pumpkin Hill where she meditated and prayed and connected with her ancestral spirits. Afterwards, she found pumpkin seeds in her pockets. Within a week, the seeds which she had planted had borne enough pumpkins to feed her people, thus warding off starvation

Myths and romance aside, the research into her story before she was bestowed with national honours found that she was a real person whose story is in fact of legendary proportions. She possessed great mental and physical strength, which she used, along with knowledge of the natural environment of eastern Jamaica, to frustrate the British up to 1839 when Captain Quao signed a treaty with the British.

FOREIGN ENEMIES

Queen Nanny refused to sign the treaty of peace and friendship because she did not trust the British, that they would honour the agreement, and signing it would be a betrayal of her people. The treaty contains various clauses that state that the Maroons should help to put down future rebellions, return run-away Africans, and support the British in their fight against foreign enemies.

Though Queen Nanny did not sign the treaty, she and her people were granted 500 acres of land by King George II. The spot, ‘Bump Grave’, where she is said to be buried is at Moore Town, Portland. She was conferred with the title of National Heroine on March 31, 1982.

Despite her national heroine status, the highest honour in the land, Queen Nanny still remains a mystery to many people. Nobody knows what she actually looked like. The image of her that Jamaicans are familiar with is an impression of her that was created in 1976.

Real image or not, Queen Nanny has left a legacy of determination and hope, not for Jamaican women only, but for women all over the world. It is a story that speaks of a woman who led her people under hazardous conditions against an army of men, regarded as the world’s bravest at the time. She wore down their resolve to the point where they decided to call it quits.

In a statement about his film, Queen Nanny: Legendary Maroon Chieftainess, producer Roy T. Anderson says, “This documentary also sheds light on the historical and mystical persona of Queen Nanny of the Maroons by placing her into the larger context of other women who fought for freedom in Africa and the Americas.”