The African- Caribbean Peasantry in the Post- Emancipation Period in the British Caribbean A fundamental development during the post emancipation period was the movement away from the estates by ex- slaves mostly to set themselves up as peasant proprietors. Indeed, many ex- slaves struggled to make a life for themselves and to etch out some form of existence for themselves and their families in a society that still had many of the prejudices of the pre- emancipation era. One of the many problems facing the ex- slaves after emancipation which still prevented them from enjoying full equality with members of the planter class was the difficulty in obtaining land to set themselves up as independent small farmers. Many ex- slaves desired to become independent small farmers but this could only happen if the ex- slaves acquired their own land. Such a life would give them the security of personal liberty and landownership, enabling them to escape the high rents and the low wages or in some cases the metayage system. Despite the fact that the colonial governments made it difficult for the ex- slaves to own Crown lands (in an attempt to keep them bound to the estates and ensure continued production of sugar), some ex- slaves were able to become peasants. Some ex- slaves set themselves up most easily where unoccupied land was most available. As the fall in sugar prices hit the estates land values fell and some estates were abandoned. By pooling their money together ex- slaves could buy these abandoned estates and then subdivide the and into plots of two, three or more acres. Ex- slaves acquired land through the help of Baptist missionaries who helped to bargain with landowners and provided funds so that peasants could set themselves up in farming villages. This also acted as an incentive to the ex- slaves to convert to Christianity and to become members of the Christian Church. Peasants who could not buy land squatted on unused Crown lands in the hills. By living on these plots long enough they came into possession of the land. Despite their success in acquiring land peasants still encountered a number of obstacles in acquiring land to establish peasant plots.
The African- Caribbean Peasantry in the Post- Emancipation Period in the British Caribbean A fundamental development during the post emancipation period was the movement away from the estates by ex- slaves mostly to set themselves up as peasant proprietors. Indeed, many ex- slaves struggled to make a life for themselves and to etch out some form of existence for themselves and their families in a society that still had many of the prejudices of the pre- emancipation era. One of the many problems facing the ex- slaves after emancipation which still prevented them from enjoying full equality with members of the planter class was the difficulty in obtaining land to set themselves up as independent small farmers. Many ex- slaves desired to become independent small farmers but this could only happen if the ex- slaves acquired their own land. Such a life would give them the security of personal liberty and landownership, enabling them to escape the high rents and the low wages or in some cases the metayage system. Despite the fact that the colonial governments made it difficult for the ex- slaves to own Crown lands (in an attempt to keep them bound to the estates and ensure continued production of sugar), some ex- slaves were able to become peasants. Some ex- slaves set themselves up most easily where unoccupied land was most available. As the fall in sugar prices hit the estates land values fell and some estates were abandoned. By pooling their money together ex- slaves could buy these abandoned estates and then subdivide the and into plots of two, three or more acres. Ex- slaves acquired land through the help of Baptist missionaries who helped to bargain with landowners and provided funds so that peasants could set themselves up in farming villages. This also acted as an incentive to the ex- slaves to convert to Christianity and to become members of the Christian Church. Peasants who could not buy land squatted on unused Crown lands in the hills. By living on these plots long enough they came into possession of the land. Despite their success in acquiring land peasants still encountered a number of obstacles in acquiring land to establish peasant plots.
adjustments_to_emancipation_1838-_1876.docx