Trinidad & Tobago before Elizabeth II - a view of Colonialism

An excerpt from my book "Ezekiel Loney" The Story of Ezekiel Loney. He escaped Slavery in Virginia during the War of 1812 to create a new Life and a new Generation in a New World. (draft).

Beyond the exploration of Christopher Columbus on his third voyage in 1498, the recorded history of Trinidad began in the early 1500s. And like in the Americas, the first inhabitants of Trinidad were the Amerindian, indigenous Arawak, and Carib people.

Trinidad was a transit point as part of a Caribbean network for the Amerindian peoples who up to 1815 had existed in Trinidad for over 5000 years, well before the arrival of Columbus, and recorded African slave populated beginning around 1813. Evidence exists of the existence of the Carib settlement on the northeast side of the island around Arima and Mucurapo, the Arawaks to the southeast and the Middens Indians in the Cedros, Palo Seco, and Erin were widespread throughout the country.

These Amerindian were not only common on the island of Trinidad, but in South and North America as well: Belize, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Greenland, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Panama and Peru and the United States as it existed in the early 1500s. Ancient history suggests that many of these land masses were connected or had easy access, so that travel was possible along these stretches of land, from the southernmost tip of the Americas to the Northernmost tip and throughout the Caribbean.

They were traditional “hunter-gathers”, although some of them were involved in the practice of both aquaculture, (the breeding, rearing, and harvesting of fish, shellfish, plants, algae, and other organisms in all types of water environments.) and agriculture, (the practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other products).?

One can also attest to the fact that some of these indigenous people were architects as well as evidenced by the numerous monuments and structures that they built up and down the American landscape. Some of these were large-scale organized cities, chiefdoms, states, and even empires.

???????????In its early history of Colonialism, Trinidad is reported to have been densely populated. They had the only "peaceful Indians" along the whole South American coast, as opposed to the Northern Coast, where the Shawnee Indians, a part of the Native American confederation who was at war with the North Americans, principally the American States.

Until the Spanish settlers arrived in 1592, the Amerindian peoples totaled some 40,000. They consisted of several tribes, including.?Yaoi, Nepuyo, Chaima, Warao, Kalipuna, Carinepogoto, Garini, Arauca.

They lived in several areas around the island: The Caroni and Oropouche rivers; the Tamana and Aripo mountains; places such as Arima, Paria, Arouca, Caura, Tunapuna, Tacarigua, Couva, Mucurapo, Chaguanas, Carapichaima, Guaico, Mayaro, Guayaguayare.

These Amerindian peoples farmed vegetables such as cassava, maize, cacao, tobacco, and hunted wild animals such as manicou and agouti with the bow and arrow, and the ajoupa (used to create traps).

They cooked and ate meals derived from their farming and consisted of Cassava bread, Farine, (reconstituted Cassava Juice); Warap, (Roti, Curried meat and potatoes wrapped in a dough shell); barbecued wild game; corn pastelles, (cooked meat wrapped in a shell made of corn); coffee; cocoa; chadon beni, a herb, an important ingredient when preparing food). Many of these foods have evolved and they are eaten and celebrated by Trinidadians regularly, and uniquely cultural.

In their efforts in aquaculture, (aquafarming of fish, crustaceans, mollusks, aquatic plants, algae, and other organisms, the Amerindians developed the canoe that not only used for aquafarming but travels across the expanse of the nearby islands where they sold their products and otherwise traded goods and services.

Margarita Island is the largest island in the Venezuelan state of Nueva Esparta, situated off the northeastern coast of the country, in the Caribbean Sea. It was called Isla de Margarita by the Spanish that occupied it beginning in 1498 when Christopher Columbus discovered it. European explorers were interested in pearl fisheries off the island, and the Spanish colonists enslaved the indigenous people, the Amerindians they commonly called “Caribs”, to satisfy the need for workers to dive for pearls. These so-called Caribs were seized from Trinidad and Tobago, both of which were located within a short distance from the island.

Treaties of Paris, (1814–15). Colonized by the Spanish in 1498, Trinidad remained in their hands until 1797, when French colonists largely settled it, and while sister island Tobago changed hands between the British, French, Dutch, and Courlanders, both islands eventually became British colonies following the second Treaty of Paris (1815).

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Two treaties signed at Paris respectively in 1814 and 1815 ended the Napoleonic Wars. The treaty signed on May 30, 1814, was between France on the one side and the Allies (Austria, Great Britain, Prussia, Russia, Sweden, and Portugal, and Spain on the other, in July 1814.

In 1889 the islands of Trinidad and Tobago were incorporated into a single British Crown Colony, and in 1962 Trinidad and Tobago obtained its independence from the British Empire and in 1972 became a republic called The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

Under British rule, an influx of settlers from the United Kingdom and the British colonies of the Eastern Caribbean. English, Scots, Irish, German and Italian families arrived in Trinidad and Tobago. Most of these new settlers were rich and brought wealth with them to their new home, and although the importation of slaves increased, this was the period of abolitionism in England with the slave trade under attack leading to the abolishment of slavery in 1833.

The Corps of Colonial Marines were transferred to British bases in Bermuda, and with their departure, the battalion was reformed as the 3rd Battalion, Colonial Marines now consisted of six infantry companies of Colonial Marines and a staffing company of Royal Marines brought from Canada.

The Marines were tasked with performing garrison duty at the Royal Naval Dockyard at Ireland Island, Bermuda where they were described as a small, but close-knit group, trusting their officers and holding the British to their promises regarding freedom and support for having fought during the war, and so began Ezekiel’s journey to his new home in Trinidad

The men had rejected orders by the British government for transfer to the West India Regiments, and when the British Admiralty refused to continue the responsibility for these Marines, the government relented and offered to settle them on the island of Trinidad. In his book, Weiss explains that these marines preferred Cochrane’s original agreement with them.

. Ezekiel was a bit ambivalent about leaving his father and other family members on the Corotoman Plantation in Virginia., but he was comforted that he had his wife, Nelly, and 2-year-old Chena, and his many siblings could successfully build the new life he envisioned in Trinidad.

The trip was a long and arduous one taking several weeks on board HMS Narcissus. Ezekiel tried to imagine what his new home was going to be like, but he had no idea and there was no one to describe it to him. He was bored most of the time after the frenzy and danger of the war. He reminisced that he was almost killed on a couple of occasions but was lucky to escape accredited to his leadership, his bravery, and that of his men.

Ezekiel rarely thought about Hannibal during his many battles, but now that he was on board this ship sailing for an unknown land where he would make his new home, thoughts of Hannibal came rushing back to him. He thought about Hannibal’s journey home after his final battle. He thought that Hannibal must have been tired of war at this point, physically and mentally exhausted, and he needed to rest, the same was true for Ezekiel.

He slept mostly on deck, not wanting to be in the belly of the ship, perhaps because of the stories he heard from his father about how slaves were transported from the coast of Africa. The beatings they suffered, the rapes of their women and children, and the death from illness. The fresh, salty air filled his nostrils and seemed to give him energy, while at the same time, relaxing him.

The sky was crystal clear on most days except for nighttime when it was as black as Africa but for the many stars that danced around as Ezekiel tried to understand them. They experienced a few storms. One threatened to drown the ship, but they endured, and this did not dampen his spirit, or discourage him.

Ezekiel thought about his men. They were excellent warriors, stood with him, and at times protected him from harm, as he did for them. He was glad that they too were going home finally as free men with their families. He did not know what awaited them, but he was hopeful that their lives would be less harsh than it was in the field on the Corotoman and other surrounding plantations. They were now free men and women, and their children will grow up free as well.

In August 1816, the Corps of the Colonial Marines arrived at the Docks in San Fernando, and from there, they were taken to the Moruga area in South Trinidad, and this is where their new lives awaited them and their families after some fourteen months at the Royal Naval Dockyard in Bermuda.

They were settled in the South of Trinidad, in the Naparima District/Savanna Grande (now Princes Town). Many of the “Merikin” Company Villages have completely changed their original names with the exception. What the chart shows most of the marines and their family were from the 4th Company. Still, most were men.

In Moruga, the men were organized by the Colonial authorities in villages according to their military companies, with each company founding its village in a free farming community under the supervision of their former non-commissioned officers.

Sergeant Ezekiel Loney who led the 3rd Company, was in “Indian Walk,” named for the main pathway used by the Guara-Joon Indians who came across the ocean from Venezuela through Moruga Bay to trade in the Spanish Mission located in Princes Town. This part of Princess Town had street names such as Loney Road, named in honor of the Loney Clan, Sampson Ridge, and Lengua, and Fort George Road which is named after an old Fort remains of which are said to be still visible today.

These American transplants were called the Merikens or Merikins because the local community could not pronounce the word, “American”, so Merikens were used to identify them with their community. The men were assigned 16-acre tracks of land for each household in settlements. In 1847 their ownership of the land was formally recognized by the British Colonial rulers, and today the community of descendants retains its identity and commemorates its roots in an annual celebration.

The Merikens were battle tested and battle-hardened and arrived with several skills that would prove to be essential for their survival. Some of these included Farming where they took to growing crops that were familiar to them that they planted on the plantations in American South such as rice, maize, benne (low oil landrace sesame), sweet potato, okra, cowpeas, sugar cane, and Tanya (Colocasia Escalante).

Today, some 200 years later, the descendants of these settlers still call themselves Merikins and many of them continue to grow these staple garden crops, and the more passionate, work to maintain those seed stocks their forefathers wisely, brought with them from America.

One can find several examples today in and around Princes Town in Southern Trinidad that could be called a time capsule of sorts of available culinary plants, some of which have evolved into hybrids, but still represent life in the early 1800s. Some examples of this continuum are African yam, pigeon peas, and a large variety of tropical fruit types.??

The Merikens were also skilled in Blacksmithing, Carpentry, Furniture-Making, and other trades that were important to building their communities. But they also depended on the local community, other free black slaves, the Amerindians, and later, the indentured East Indians who were brought from India.

They needed to build structures and develop the land into farms and other businesses that supported the community. The local population saw Merikens as an opportunity to earn an income, so they were eager to help in various ways. After some early suspicions by the locals, they interacted well, and these interactions were long-lasting and far-reaching, and continue to today.

The year 1783 brought an influx of French planters and their African slaves. The Amerindians population was displaced from their lands with several tribes being relocated to Arima, mostly the Nepuyo tribe, and were generically referred to as either "Caribe" or "Indio"

These French planters and other catholic settlers were interested in growing Sugarcane and Cotton, dramatically increasing the need for more African slave labor. These slaves arrived with their owners from other Caribbean islands as well. These slaves were considered to be seasoned and experienced because most were first, second, or even third generation-born in the Caribbean and as a result had developed immunity to most tropical diseases.

Another presented by these slaves was that they spoke either French or Spanish or both and were well assimilated into the master/slave relationship, thus making them very valuable to these estate owners. Other slaves came increasingly out of Africa, but they were often sick after the long sea journey and were considered to be of poor quality. They were abused during the trip, and many of them died during the journey or soon after their arrival in Trinidad.

African slave labor quickly became the basis of the social and economic structure of the Caribbean Islands as it did in the United States and other countries where African peoples were enslaved. With the British conquest of 1797, the black slave population increased dramatically. It is estimated that during the period of this importation, the slave population increased to approximately 10,000 in Trinidad and by 1802, this population doubled to more than 20,000.

The clear majority of these slaves came from Senegambia in western Africa, to northern Angola in the South, to central Congo. Some were Islamic Mandigoes from Sub-Saharan Africa.

In 1806, the slave trade was prohibited in the British Empire., and abolished in 1834, and this influx of enslaved peoples triggered the formal acquiescence to England, bringing about the first significant change to the cultural fabric of Trinidad. and the introduction of Portuguese laborers from the island of Madeira began arriving between 1834 and 1860, broadening the cultural diversity of the Island.

On May 30, 1845, the first indentured (contract) laborers were brought from India to work on the plantations. It is estimated that between 1845 to 1917 approximately 130,000 immigrant laborers (100,000 Hindus and 30,000 Muslims) came from India. These immigrants brought their religious customs with them, including the festival of Divali (Hindu) and the observance of Hosay (Muslim).

Adding to this diverse population, between 1849 and 1866, immigrant laborers were also brought in from China, and in the 1900s, merchants came from Lebanon and Syria, but the predominant population and cultural expression remained of African ancestry.

The Villages. On their farms, Ezekiel Loney and other Merikens grew crops such as Sugarcane, Corn, Rice, and vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumber, Cassava, Pigeon peas, string beans, (Bodi), and other foods which were the mainstay of their daily diet.

They utilized a variety of seafood, including fish, (Carete, Red Fish, ‘Snapper’, Kingfish), and the harvested Crab, (Blue crabs which were plentiful during a full moon, and Brown crabs which lived in the mangroves in certain areas near the Moruga Bay. There was also a special delicacy called ‘Chip-Chip’, a small Mollusk or Clam that lived in the ocean sand in shallow waters and were mostly harvested in the months of January and February, but much of the consumed seafood was purchased from or bartered with the Amerindians who plied the seas in the area.

The social fabric of the Company Villages was centered in the Church, the Baptist Church. There were and still are variations of the Baptist Church that are influenced by the African cultural heritage. Some variations were: The ‘Orthodox’ London Baptist, the Independent Baptist, and the Spiritual Baptist.

Since this period, three variations have emerged: The Baptist Union of Trinidad and Tobago, (The London Baptist), the Independent Baptist, the Spiritual Baptist, the Sovereign Grace Mission Baptist, the Fundamental Baptist, and the Trinidad and Tobago Baptist Association.

It was not uncommon for Religious personalities to be considered leaders of the Villages and among the general population during these times, and they wielded their perceived influence broadly among village residents and in general.

In this atmosphere of religion and rituals, the practice of harnessing supernatural forces and spirits for one’s own personal use, known in some parts of Africa as ‘Obeye’ (an entity that lives within witches), took on many names in the Caribbean islands, such as Shango (Trinidad), Santeria (Cuba), Vodun or Voodoo (Haiti), Ju-Ju (Bahamas), Obeah (Jamaica),

?While African slaves usually practiced Obeah for "evil" or rather self-interested, instrumental purposes, they believed that this practice also aided them as a source of strength and clandestine resistance in their interaction with their owners and others in authority. It is the belief that one can use certain spirits or supernatural agents to work harm to the living or to call them off from such mischief.

In his book, “Religion and Resistance”, Alexander Giraldo describes and explains the practice of Obeah or “Obeye”, its original African name. Giraldo explains that from its origins in Africa, the practice of Obeah for “evil” or self-interest, but also considered a faith were participants drew strength and a form of resistance of authority.

The British Colonialists generally frowned on the practice of all forms of Obeah and its practice and interpreted the term to describe all slave acts and practices, such as rituals and fetishes that they considered as supernatural or evil.

One famous practitioner of so-called Obeah was the descendant of the Merikens named Ebenezer Elliot; he was more commonly known as Papa Nezer or Neza. He was described as a dynamic person, well known for his prophecies using the ‘Obee Seed’ and bible passages (especially the Psalms), from which he would counsel according to his revelations.

Papa Neza was thought to have special powers to heal the sick and cast off evil spirits, and special skills which attracted many from the neighborhood and region. He was also a family man, who was sociable, charitable, and very approachable and because he established undying friendships and acquaintances, he became known as ‘Papa’ or ‘father’, and he promoted his religion eventually influencing the development of the modern church in his community.

Other social activities that were commonplace included Cockfighting. The history of Cockfighting goes all the way back to the Greeks, Romans, Persians, and Africans, and continued to modern-day sports enthusiasts. It is considered a blood sport and although banned by modern-day governments, it continues illegally. Merikens participated in this sport regularly, most of the weekends. Mostly a Friday night event. The neighbors brought their fighter birds with them and gathered in someone’s yard in an atmosphere that was always intense

Participants would place bets on their birds and sometimes even against them. The men were anxious and frustrated when they lost a bet, and many of them were drunk from drinking the locally brewed bush rum, (an extremely strong homemade rum that although it was illegal, it was popular among the local communities).

They also involved themselves in “Stick-fighting. Although this activity was commonplace among African slaves before the arrival of the Merikens, they were quick to participate, using the skills developed by their military training.

Stick-Fighting is described as “Calinda” that is commonly seen and practiced in Trinidad & Tobago and it is part of the Carnival festivities every year in February or March. When the French planters arrived in Trinidad in the late 1700s with their slaves, free coloreds and mulattos from neighboring islands of Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Dominica, Carnival had arrived with them.

Slaves organized an annual celebration called Canboulay, the precursor to Trinidad's Carnival, and after the Emancipation of slavery, the celebration expanded to include a lead vocalist or chantwell (Chantuelle) who would sing call-and-response chants called Lavways, a form of music gradually evolved into the modern calypso), encouraging and cheering in support of one of the champion stick fighters.

The Merikens were well-thought of as strong, disciplined, industrious, and bright, making several contributions other than religion to the extended community of South Trinidad and to the Island of Trinidad as well. These contributions are deeply embedded deep within the general culture of Trinidad and Tobago and fit into a diverse and rich culture that embraces contributions from East Indians, Chinese, Middle Eastern, (Syrians, Lebanese), British, and other European cultures. This diversity was and continues to be unique among other global cultures.

Ezekiel not only grew his Village, but he grew his family expeditiously as well. These are the known members of the Loney Clan as researched by the Merikens Society. There may be more of us, but the author is unable to obtain any more information related to the Loney’s. Based on research by the Merikens Society, some of them had emigrated to the other West Indian, or Caribbean Islands, the U.S., and perhaps to Canada or the United Kingdom.