History of São Tomé and Príncipe


Rei Amador
Rei Amador

The knowledge of its past is half the way of understanding contemporary São Tomé e Príncipe


Rei Amador

Amador, the leader of the great slave revolt of 1595, is an emblematic figure in the history of São Tomé and Príncipe

Historical documents say that Amador was a slave born in São Tomé ('creole captive') and that the revolt began on July 9th 1595 with the killing of some whites during mass at the Trindade church and ended on the 29th of that month with defeat and surrender of slaves. The documents do not reveal the immediate reason for the revolt, the documents says that Amador's hostility was directed against "all whites and proceeded from them [mixed races]."
During the three weeks of the insurrection the slaves destroyed many sugar plantations and mills and there were several fights between the governor's troop and the slaves with significant casualties. A groups of attackers was commanded by "Negro Cristóvão, probably referring to runaway slaves in the interior of the island, where they organized themselves into macambos (communities), which would later be known as Angolars. The number of insurgent slaves corresponded to about half of the slave population in São Tomé at that time. After their defeat , the main commanders of the slaves including Amador, were arrested and hanged. During the insurrection, many sugar mills were destroyed. Sugar production in São Tomé and Príncipe would never again reach its level before the revolt. The revolt accelerated the decline of the archipelago's sugar industry that had started around 1580. 

Text adapted from  https://www.buala.org/pt/a-ler/rei-amador-historia-e-mito-do-lider-da-revolta-de-escravos-em-sao-tome-1595