1722–1758: (The Spiritual Engine of Vodou and the Legend of Makandal): As early as 1722, records describe the enslaved secretly commingling African beliefs w…

1722–1758: (The Spiritual Engine of Vodou and the Legend of Makandal): As early as 1722, records describe the enslaved secretly commingling African beliefs with Christian liturgy, marking the first precise historical account of the beginnings of Vodou. This spiritual resistance found a powerful leader in François Makandal, a one-armed Guinea-born sorcerer who fled to the northern mountains in 1751. For six years, Makandal acted as the “scourge of the French,” preaching a fanatic vision of total white elimination and claiming to be an invulnerable, immortal figure. Following his capture and execution in January 1758, he predicted he would be reincarnated as a deadly mosquito to continue the struggle against his oppressors. As he burned at the stake in Cap Français, he writhed in a final convulsion that snapped his bindings, prompting the watching crowds to cry out “Makandal sove!” in the belief his soul had escaped.