Samuel Sharpe
Samuel Sharpe was a Jamaican Baptist deacon and a key figure in the fight for freedom from slavery in Jamaica. Born in 1801, he is best known for leading the 1831 Christmas Rebellion, which was a significant uprising against the oppressive plantation system. His efforts ultimately contributed to the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. In recognition of his bravery and leadership, Sharpe was posthumously declared a National Hero of Jamaica. Statues and memorials, such as those in Sam Sharpe Square in Montego Bay, honor his legacy and the struggle for justice and equality in Jamaica's history.
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Recent news mentions
Samuel Sharpe was a great slave leader and a deacon at Burchell Memorial Baptist Church.
Historic Baptist churches played pivotal role in liberation | News
Jamaica· 2026-01-26
Samuel Sharpe led the famous 1831 slave revolt in Jamaica.
Hurricane Melissa a ‘real-time case study’ of colonialism’s legacies | Jamaica
United Kingdom· 2025-11-16
Samuel Sharpe provided a guiding light to the world as to the power of peaceful protest in securing fundamental rights and freedoms.
Mark Golding: Choose empathy over anger, unity over division, hope over despair | NewsJamaica· 2025-10-20
Samuel Sharpe, known for leading the Baptist War (Christmas Rebellion) of 1831–32, anchored the moral argument that slavery should end.
Tribute: In the footsteps of the brave | Art & LeisureJamaica· 2025-10-19
Samuel Sharpe was a Baptist Deacon and a literate lay-preacher who believed slavery was wrong and organized a general strike against it.
Sam Sharpe did not start the fire, but … | NewsJamaica· 2025-10-17
Samuel Sharpe was a heroic personality of the 1831-32 slave revolt in western Jamaica.
Celebrating the life of William Knibb | Art & LeisureJamaica· 2025-08-03
Samuel Sharpe was born in the Croydon in the Mountains plantation site, which is significant to the area.
StJMC signs $23m contract to rehabilitate Richmond Hill, Catadupa roads | NewsJamaica· 2025-08-01
He praised National Hero Samuel Sharpe for his leadership in what he described as a blueprint for passive revolution.
UNIA president urges deeper understanding of Emancipation Day | Lead StoriesJamaica· 2025-08-01
Samuel Sharpe engineered the Baptist War, a critical contribution to ending slavery.
Religious Leadership and Social Justice
Guyana· 2025-04-14
Samuel Sharpe was a Baptist deacon and leader of a rebellion by enslaved people in 1831-32.
Secrets of Success: the church that served a plantation remains a monument of resistance | Reparations and reparative justiceUnited Kingdom· 2025-04-02
Samuel Sharpe is revered as a national hero, and his monument was vandalized in Montego Bay.
Sam Sharpe monument gets unwanted coat of green paint | Lead StoriesJamaica· 2025-03-25
The statues, which were erected in honour of National Hero Samuel Sharpe, had a fence erected around them in 2023 to minimise the potential for vandalism.
Statues in Sam Sharpe Square vandalised | NewsJamaica· 2025-03-25