The Spirit of Nanny: Warrior. Mother. Maroon.
“Let us remember that we come from a people who refused to bow. A people who refused to be broken. A people who, like Nanny, knew that freedom was not given, it was taken.”
Let us take a moment to honour one of the fiercest women to ever walk the soil of resistance, Queen Nanny of the Maroons. She was not just a Jamaican hero. She was a spiritual general, a divine strategist, a freedom fighter born of Ashanti royalty who rose against the might of the British Empire and won.
Let the record be set straight.
Was Nanny a Maroon?
Yes. But to say only that would be to shrink her power. Nanny was a commander, a mother of nations, a woman of such tactical brilliance that her name struck fear into the heart of colonial oppressors. The Jamaican government calls her a National Hero.
But among the descendants of struggle, she is far more, she is a symbol of divine rebellion.
What was her real name?
She was born Sarah Matilda Rowe, but history remembers her as Nanny, a title of reverence among her people. Nanny, the nourisher. Nanny, the protector. Nanny, the liberator.
Where was she born?
She came from the powerful Ashanti Tribe of Ghana, where warrior blood runs deep and the ancestors speak through drum, dance and fire.
What year was she born?
In the year 1686, the winds shifted. The world didn't know it yet, but a storm had been born in Africa, one that would shake the colonial world to its knees.
Did Nanny of the Maroons go to Jamaica?
Yes. Torn from her homeland by the brutal hand of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, she was taken to Jamaica, but she did not arrive as a victim. She arrived as a seed. And like every seed buried beneath injustice, she rose.
What is Jamaica known as?
The Land of Wood and Water, but to the Maroons, it was also a land of spiritual warfare, ancestral memory and guerrilla resistance.
When did the first Maroon War take place?
Between 1728 and 1739, a war of spirit and survival raged in the mountains. The British, with all their muskets and might, were brought to the negotiating table, not by armies, but by the indomitable will of a people led by a woman.
Did the Maroons defeat the British?
They were never defeated. The British Empire, so used to conquering, was forced to sign a peace treaty, recognising the sovereignty of the Maroon communities. That, my sisters, is the sound of resistance winning.
How did the Maroons communicate in times of danger?
They used the Abeng, a horn made from cow horn, whose sacred sound carried messages through the mountains. It was not just a call; it was a code of freedom.
Let Us Honour Her Legacy
We do not study Nanny just to admire her. We study her to remember who we are. We are not just descendants of struggle. We are the inheritance of greatness.
So, what does Nanny mean to you, not just as a historical figure, but as a mirror of your own strength, your lineage, your leadership?
This is more than a name in a textbook. This is the spirit of a woman who outwitted an empire, who commanded troops from the mountains and who fought, not for applause, but for freedom yet unborn. She is the embodiment of what it means to rise, to lead and to live with purpose rooted in legacy.
We invite you not just to remember Nanny, but to respond to her legacy. Share your reflections below. What lessons does she still teach us today as Black women navigating systems designed to silence us? How do we carry her strategy, her stillness, her fire into our communities, boardrooms and homes?
Let your words echo with the wisdom of the ancestors. Let your voice be part of the living archive. Like this post to honour her name. Share it so others may remember. Reflect so we may rise, not just in remembrance, but in responsibility.
History is not behind us, it is moving through us. Let Nanny’s legacy continue in you.
