• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Our history archive

Our History

Our History Archive, where history comes to life

  • Home
  • Colonisation
  • World History
  • Civil Rights
  • World cultures
  • Features
  • Wellbeing
  • Popular Culture

Samuel Sharpe and the 1831 Christmas Rebellion

Sam Sharp statue
Statues of National Hero Samuel Sharpe and his followers in Sam Sharpe Square, Montego Bay
Features
27 December, 2020

Samuel Sharpe instigates a rebellion

On 27 December 1831, the Christmas Rebellion began at the Kensington Estate in St James, Jamaica.

Samuel Sharpe was the main instigator of the 1831 Slave Rebellion. Although he was a slave, he was also a leader of the native Baptists in Montego Bay. This enabled him to travel and spread his concerns and encourage political thought, concerning events in England which affected the slaves and Jamaica.

Sam evolved a plan of passive resistance in 1831, whereby the slaves would refuse to work on Christmas Day of 1831 and afterwards, unless their grievances concerning the better treatment and the consideration of freedom, were accepted by the estate owners and managers. Sam’s plan failed.




Share this:

  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp

Related

You May Also Like…

More details Jesse Jackson surrounded by marchers carrying signs advocating support for the Hawkins-Humphrey Bill for full employment,

Keep hope alive: The rise, power, and legacy of Jesse Jackson

The revolutionary icon: Ernesto "Che" Guevara

Ernesto “Che” Guevara: : The revolutionary icon

Portrait of Bartolomé de Las Casas (c.1484 - 1566)

Bartolomé de las Casas and the birth of human rights

William Randolph Hearst

William Randolph Hearst: The king of Yellow Journalism




Reader Interactions

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

Sidebar

This Day In History

No Events

More details Jesse Jackson surrounded by marchers carrying signs advocating support for the Hawkins-Humphrey Bill for full employment,

Keep hope alive: The rise, power, and legacy of Jesse Jackson

The revolutionary icon: Ernesto "Che" Guevara

Ernesto “Che” Guevara: : The revolutionary icon

Portrait of Bartolomé de Las Casas (c.1484 - 1566)

Bartolomé de las Casas and the birth of human rights

Trending

  • The rise and fall of the Persian Empire
    The rise and fall of the Persian Empire
  • Mexican culture: A living mosaic of civilisations, faith, and tradition
    Mexican culture: A living mosaic of civilisations, faith, and tradition
  • The British Empire: An overview of empire and colonisation
    The British Empire: An overview of empire and colonisation
  • The 1972 Munich Olympics massacre
    The 1972 Munich Olympics massacre
  • Holy Wars: The blood-soaked legacy of conflicts fought in the name of Christianity
    Holy Wars: The blood-soaked legacy of conflicts fought in the name of Christianity
  • The history of South Africa: From colonisation to independence
    The history of South Africa: From colonisation to independence
  • The Arab slave trade
    The Arab slave trade
  • History of Canada - From colonisation to independence
    History of Canada - From colonisation to independence
  • The rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire: Six centuries of imperial power
    The rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire: Six centuries of imperial power
  • McCarthyism and the Cold War: America's Second Red Scare
    McCarthyism and the Cold War: America's Second Red Scare

Connect

  • YouTube
  • TikTok
  • Bluesky

ABOUT

CONTACT

PRIVACY POLICY

COOKIES

Copyright © 2026 · Our History · All Rights Reserved