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Physical Organization of Maroon Communities
195
other traps in much the same way as other settlements, offered little resistance
when the colonial state sent large and enterprising forces against them
(Borrego Plá 1973, 26–27, 79–109).
But even settlements that were well fortified and had been victims of
previous attacks did not always guard their approaches diligently. This happened
notably in 1677 in the mocambo of Aqualtune, ruled by the Queen
Mother of the Palmares confederation. It was only after its defences had
been breached that the inhabitants realized that the enemy was at hand
(Carneiro 1946, 18, 97). A similar instance of carelessness or complacency
led to the demise of arguably the most formidable Maroon community in
Dominica, led by Balla. The settlement was located in an area that was quite
remote from the plantations. The expeditionary force had to travel all night
through wooded terrain, crossing rivers and steep mountains, before arriving
at the settlement. The sentinels had not been put in place, although the
leader of the expeditionary force had attacked the settlement once before.
The settlement was located on a steep and rugged mountain, and the
Maroons had carved out a flight of steps to their dwellings in such a way as
to make it impossible for anyone to climb from stair to stair (“it being cut
into steps of a great height above each other”) without assistance from
another person. According to a contemporary record, “These steps the party
were obliged to go up, one after the other, and to have their muskets handed
to them, the one on the upper, by him on the step below.” This must have
taken some time and was probably attended with some noise. However,
while all this was happening the Maroons were making preparations for
dinner, and they only realized that their security had been breached when
death stared them in the face. In the sequel, not only did the expeditionary
force kill a number of them and capture their women and children, but also
Balla was eventually tracked down and killed (Atwood 1971, 246–47; Honychurch
1975, 74–75).
In the case of the Cofre de Perote Maroons, there is some debate as to
whether it was overconfidence or too much trust in the Whites by Yanga, the
leader, that led to a massive assault on the polity. According to one interpretation,
after repulsing a military force sent against him, Yanga sent back a
captive with a letter to the colonial authorities, detailing the wrongs that he
had suffered at the hands of the Whites and daring them to come and get
him. However, another interpretation is that he had sent back the prisoner
with details of the terms of a possible negotiated arrangement with the colo-