O Quilombo dos Palmares it was the largest quilombo that existed in Latin America. It was built in the region of the current state of Alagoas and gathered around 20 thousand inhabitants. It was one of the great symbols of slave resistance in Brazil and was the target of expeditions organized by the Portuguese and the Dutch. It was destroyed in 1694 and its leader, Zumbi, was killed the following year in an ambush.
Also access: Understand how slavery worked in Brazil
How did the Quilombo dos Palmares come about?
The Quilombo dos Palmares emerged at the end of the 16th century, in the territory of captaincy of Pernambuco, more precisely in a region where the state of alagoas. The quilombo was formed by slaves who had fled from plantations in the Pernambuco region and who chose the region of Serra da Belly, in the forest area of Alagoas.
The first known record that mentions the Quilombo dos Palmares dates back to 1597, although there are some theories that support that the quilombo already existed before that. Over time, Palmares grew, became famous, serving as an inspiration for other slaves to resist and flee. It had about 20 thousand inhabitants.
It was called Quilombo dos Palmares, because it was built in a region that had a large number of palm trees and these trees had countless uses, as they provided food for the quilombolas and their leaves were used to make the roof of the huts that were built.
How was life in Quilombo dos Palmares?
First, life in the quilombo revolved around the issue of security, as the Portuguese represented a great threat and often tried to destroy Palmares. Thus, the quilombo was built in a region that would guarantee extra security. The region that Quilombo was located in was a mountain region, quite unpopulated and with woodsdense.
Palmares was the result of a combination of mocambos, small settlements of runaway slaves, which were built on the border between Alagoas and Pernambuco (but at the time, everything was part of the same captaincy). In the case of Palmares, the mocambos formed a quilombola confederation which stretched over a reasonably vast territory.
Some of the shacks that formed Palmares were the following:
Aqualtune;
Andalaquituche;
Subupira;
Cerca Real do Macaco (or just Mocambo do Macaco).
These were some of the various mocambos that formed Palmares and of all of them the most important was the mocambo Royal Monkey Fence. This shack was the political center de Palmares, the place where the king of the quilombo resided and which, as the capital, was the most populous and was formed by about 6 thousand inhabitants.
The capital of Palmares had strict security and was surrounded by three large palisades (walls of wood) that had surveillance towers that were always on the lookout to ensure the safety of the quilombo. In addition, around the wall, there were dozens of traps, above all, ditches with stakes hidden by straw.
The path that led to the entrance to this mocambo was known only to the residents of Palmares. The junction of the mocambos that formed Palmares was named by the quilombolas of Angolaraft (meaning “small Angola”) which demonstrates the disposition of the quilombolas to form a small African State in the interior of the American continent.
The quilombo had power structure, in management it's from work themselves. To ensure their survival, they maintained frequent contact with small settlers and small villages in the region, with the aim of exchanging goods. As a symbol of resistance for slaves, Palmares encouraged, directly and indirectly, the escape and the slave rebellion in the region and, therefore, was seen as a major threat by the colonizers.
Food at the Quilombo dos Palmares
The survival of the quilombo stemmed from the agriculture, and the main items produced in Palmares were cassava (used to produce flour), beans, potatoes, corn and molasses (produced from sugarcane cultivation). The collection was also important for the quilombolas who consumed hearts of palm and other fruits extracted from trees in the region.
Two leaders from Quilombo dos Palmares
The records that historians have mention two great leaders of the quilombo. The only Palmares leaders we know were denimZumba and Zombie. The first died in mysterious conditions (presumably from poisoning) and is believed to have been the leader of Palmares from 1645 to 1678. Zumbi was elected chief of the quilombo and remained as such from 1678 to 1695 – when he was killed by the Portuguese.
read more: Understand Zumbi's inspiration for the creation of Black Awareness Day in Brazil
Destruction of Palms
The history of Palmares was marked by resistance and struggle against the colonizers. In the period of Dutch invasion in the Northeast (1630-1654), the quilombo registered a significant growth, as a result of the disorganization of the Europeans in the region that reduced the search for escaped slaves and reduced levels of surveillance, facilitating leaks.
In any case, throughout the entire 17th century, the inhabitants of Palmares had to struggle to survive. countless expeditions of colonizers were carried out with the aim of destroying the quilombo, the first of which was registered in 1602. The Dutch also organized expeditions to finish off Palmares, but they failed.
The Portuguese, in turn, were the greatest adversaries of the quilombolas in Palmares. The Portuguese expeditions against Palmares were concentrated after the Portuguese managed to expel the Dutch from Pernambuco. From the 1650s onwards, the Portuguese carried out dozens of expeditions against Palmares.
In the year 1678, Ganga Zumba, until then king of Palmares, received a peace offering sent by the governor of the captaincy of Pernambuco, d. Pedro de Almeida. Then Ganga Zumba went to Recife to negotiate the terms of the peace offer with the governor of the captaincy and the stipulated terms were as follows:
Those born in Palmares would be considered free;
All those who accepted the agreement would be removed from the mountains and given land to live on;
They could not house new runaway slaves;
Those who guaranteed their freedom would be considered vassals of the Crown.
The peace proposal was accepted by Ganga Zumba, but it caused division in the quilombo, because it did not contemplate the runaway slaves – these should be handed over to the colonial authorities and sent to their former owners. This division resulted in the Ganga Zumba's death and the new leader who took over – Zumbi – rejected the possibility of an agreement and opted for the fight.
There was a new phase of struggles, until between 1692 and 1694, the pioneer Domingos Jorge Velho he led an expedition after having its terms (which were not few) accepted by the Pernambuco authorities. Domingos Jorge Velho's troop was made up of thousands of men and even possessed cannons (which were only taken there in 1694).
It is considered the end of Palmares the year 1694, but the quilombola resistance in the region continued for the following years. The Zumbi himself resisted until 1695, when he was ambush and dead by the Portuguese. Portuguese troops remained in the region until the mid-eighteenth century to prevent the quilombo from reemerging.
*Image credits: Cassiohabib and Shutterstock
By Daniel Neves
Graduated in History
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/historiab/quilombo-dos-palmares.htm