Queen Nanny and Indigenous Responses in The Revolutions Period

If you are studying revolutions in the 18th century, you might reconsider how you teach the influence of the Enlightenment.

That is because indigenous responses,  especially in Haiti, Jamaica, and South America, did more to spark revolution than philosophical ideas about freedom and government.

In a terrific blog post about "the agency and the resilience of African descended people," AP World teacher, Eric Beckman (@ERBeckman), outlines ideas and resources for incorporating a more "complex" understanding of revolutions in this period.

One resource that will help our students understand that agency and resiliency is an amazing podcast about the maroon response to the British and the Spanish in Jamaica in the 1700s.

The podcast is only 19 minutes long and the story of Queen Nanny is read by Funmilola Fagbamil, Professor of Pan African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles.

We learn how Queen Nanny used her knowledge of the Jamaican environment to help escaped slaves  fight against, and often outsmart,  first the Spanish, and then the British

Professor Fagbamli reads Queen Nanny's story with the flair of a seasoned actress and you often find yourself wondering what's going to happen after each major event.

Beckman's blog also includes resources on indigenous responses in the Haitian Revolution as well as those in South America. He includes one map that shows scores of slave revolts throughout South America.