Lomboko
Encyclopedia
Lomboko refers to a slave factory; a fortress stockade created by the infamous Spanish slave trader Pedro Blanco
. It consisted of several large holding depots or barracoons for slaves brought from the interior, as well as several palatial buildings for Blanco's use, to hold his wives and concubines, and house his employees. Lomboko was scattered across several small islands at the mouth of the Gallinas river, near Sulima
on the Gallinas coast that was controlled by Spanish
slave merchants, within the British colony, and modern-day country of Sierra Leone
. By 1839, about 2,000 slaves a year were coming out of the Gallinas River, despite the fact that the slave trade had been made illegal. In 1849 a British Royal Navy expedition attacked the slave factory: all the slaves found in the fortress were freed by Royal Marines, and Lomboko was then completely destroyed.
The fortress plays a prominent part in the Steven Spielberg
film Amistad
. In the movie, main character Cinque as well as other slaves had been shown to be captured and brought to Lomboko and treated cruelly.
Pedro Blanco
Pedro Blanco was a notorious Spanish slave trader based in Gallinas on the coast of Sierra Leone in the second quarter of the 19th century. Before entering in the slave trade, Blanco ran a sugar mill in Cuba....
. It consisted of several large holding depots or barracoons for slaves brought from the interior, as well as several palatial buildings for Blanco's use, to hold his wives and concubines, and house his employees. Lomboko was scattered across several small islands at the mouth of the Gallinas river, near Sulima
Sulima, Sierra Leone
Sulima is a town in the extreme south east of Sierra Leone, lying at the mouth of the Moa River. Originally a trading post in the nineteenth century, it has a large population of refugees from Liberia....
on the Gallinas coast that was controlled by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
slave merchants, within the British colony, and modern-day country of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
. By 1839, about 2,000 slaves a year were coming out of the Gallinas River, despite the fact that the slave trade had been made illegal. In 1849 a British Royal Navy expedition attacked the slave factory: all the slaves found in the fortress were freed by Royal Marines, and Lomboko was then completely destroyed.
The fortress plays a prominent part in the Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
film Amistad
Amistad (1997 film)
Amistad is a 1997 historical drama film directed by Steven Spielberg based on the true story of a mutiny in 1839 by newly captured African slaves that took place aboard the ship La Amistad off the coast of Cuba, the subsequent voyage to the Northeastern United States and the legal battle that...
. In the movie, main character Cinque as well as other slaves had been shown to be captured and brought to Lomboko and treated cruelly.