A rare diary entry from an 18th-century enslaver is challenging how we understand the origins of Africans trafficked during the transatlantic slave trade. It offers an unusually detailed, 134-word biography of Apongo, a prince-turned-rebel leader in Jamaica. Also known as Wager, this fragment reveals he was a subject of the powerful West African kingdom of Dahomey, in present-day Benin, before being captured and shipped to Jamaica. There, he famously helped lead Tacky’s Revolt, a major slave uprising in 1760. Historians are now unraveling this clue, debating whether it clarifies his identity or highlights the complex, interconnected world of West Africa that simplistic European labels failed to capture. This search exemplifies the ongoing effort to recover the lost human stories behind the brutal trade.
The Conversation
