Everything about Zumbi totally explained
Zumbi also known as
Zumbi dos Palmares (
1655 -
November 20,
1695, pronounced: 'zoombee') was the last of the leaders of the
Quilombo dos Palmares, in the present-day state of
Alagoas,
Brazil.
Quilombos
Quilombos were fugitive slave settlements or slave refugee settlements. Quilombos represented slave resistance which occurred in three forms, slave settlements, attempts at seizing power, and armed insurrection. Members of quilombos often returned to plantations or towns to encourage their former fellow slaves to flee and join the quilombos. If necessary, they brought slaves by force and sabotaged plantations. Slaves who came to quilombos on their own were considered free, but those who were captured and brought by force were considered slaves and continued to be slaves in the settlement. They could be considered free if they were to bring another captive to the settlement.
Quilombo dos Palmares was a self-sustaining republic of
Maroons escaped from the
Portuguese settlements in Brazil, "a region perhaps the
size of Portugal in the hinterland of Bahia" (Braudel 1984 p 390). At its height, Palmares had a population of over 30,000. Forced to defend against repeated attacks by
Portuguese colonial power, the warriors of Palmares were expert in
capoeira, a martial arts form that was brought to or created in Brazil by African slaves circa the 16th century.
Early life
An African known only as Zumbi was born free in Palmares in 1655, but was captured by the Portuguese and given to a missionary, Father António Melo when he was approximately 6 years old. Baptized Francisco, Zumbi was taught the sacraments, learned
Portuguese and
Latin, and helped with daily
mass. Despite attempts to "civilize" him, Zumbi escaped in 1670 and, at the age of 15, returned to his birthplace. Zumbi became known for his physical prowess and cunning in battle and was a respected military strategist by the time he was in his early twenties.
Leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares
By 1678, the
governor of the
captaincy of
Pernambuco, Pedro Almeida, weary of the longstanding conflict with Palmares, approached its leader
Ganga Zumba with an olive branch. Almeida offered freedom for all runaway slaves if Palmares would submit to Portuguese authority, a proposal which Ganga Zumba favored. But Zumbi was distrustful of the Portuguese. Further, he refused to accept freedom for the people of Palmares while other
Africans remained enslaved. He rejected Almeida's overture and challenged Ganga Zumba's leadership. Vowing to continue the resistance to Portuguese oppression, Zumbi became the new leader of Palmares.
Fifteen years after Zumbi assumed leadership of Palmares, Portuguese military commanders
Domingos Jorge Velho and
Bernardo Vieira de Melo mounted an artillery assault on the quilombo.
February 6,
1694, after 67 years of ceaseless conflict with the
cafuzos, or Maroons, of Palmares, the Portuguese succeeded in destroying
Cerca do Macaco, the republic's central settlement. Before the king Ganga Zumba was dead, Zumbi had taken it upon himself to fight for Palmares' independence. In doing so he became known as the commander-in-chief in 1675. Due to his heroic efforts it increased his prestige. Palmares' warriors were no match for the Portuguese artillery; the republic fell, and Zumbi was wounded in one leg.
Death
Though he survived and managed to elude the Portuguese and continue the rebellion for almost two years, he was betrayed by a
mulato who belonged to the quilombo and who had been captured by the
Paulistas, and in return for his life, he led them to Zumbi's hideout. Zumbi was captured and beheaded on the spot
November 20,
1695. The Portuguese transported Zumbi's head to
Recife, where it was displayed in the central
praça as proof that, contrary to popular legend among
African slaves, Zumbi wasn't immortal. It was also done as a warning of what would happen to others if they tried to be as brave as him. Remnants of the old quilombos continued to reside in the region for another hundred years.
Importance today
Today,
November 20 is celebrated, chiefly in
Rio de Janeiro, as a day of black awareness (consciência negra). The day has special meaning for
Afro-Brazilians who honor Zumbi as a hero, freedom fighter and symbol of freedom. Zumbi had become the hero of the twentieth-century Afro-Brazilian political movement.
Tributes
Further Information
Get more info on 'Zumbi'.
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