1791-Nov.-late: In the closing weeks of 1791, the white plantocracy along Jamaica’s northern coast mobilized in a “defensive reaction” against the growing sp…

1791-Nov.-late: In the closing weeks of 1791, the white plantocracy along Jamaica’s northern coast mobilized in a “defensive reaction” against the growing specter of black rebellion. Parish freeholders established “committees of secrecy and safety” charged with gathering information on local slave activity and maintaining inter-parish communication. While officials in Spanish Town initially viewed the local alarm as overblown, committees in St. James and Trelawny insisted they had great reason to apprehend an impending insurrection. These bodies focused on interrupting the flow of information that linked local plantations to the successful uprising in Saint-Domingue. The organization of these committees reflected the deep-seated fear that the “Ideas of Liberty” had permanently radicalized the unfree population.