Contested Conquests:African Maroons and the Incomplete Conquest of Hispaniola, 1519–1620

A re-evaluation of Spanish anti-maroon campaigns on Hispaniola reveals that these actions were integral to the prolonged and often incomplete process of Spanish conquest, challenging the dominant narrative of post-conquest colonial order. The study highlights that African maroons, traditionally seen as resistors, were also active 'conquerors' in their own right. This insight emerges from an analysis of a 1571 royal decree authorizing the 'conquest' of maroon communities, a term rarely used for anti-maroon campaigns, which typically employed euphemistic language like 'reduce,' 'pacify,' or 'dislodge.' The research approach involves examining the linguistic and historical context of this decree, linking it to broader patterns of resistance and conquest in Spanish America from 1519 to 1620.

Schwaller, R. C. (2018). Contested Conquests:African Maroons and the Incomplete Conquest of Hispaniola, 1519–1620. The Americas, 75(4), 609–638. https://doi.org/10.1017/tam.2018.3