A Cast of Characters
‘now the nurse, housekeeper, and paintress makes her as busy as if she had all the affairs of this world on her’
Referring to his wife, Lady Vere Lynch, Sir Thomas Lynch, the Governor of Jamaica, to Lord Arlington, Colonial Papers, March 2nd, 1671-72
There can be no doubt that many early colonialists were avaricious, rapacious and cruel, but they were resilient and endured hardships we would not countenance today.
They were also enterprising and adventurous, and in some cases extremely brave, sailing into unknown waters, to then unknown places, in less than ideal conditions. Some of the engraved Jamaican work have inscriptions or the initials of these people.
We have identified and researched several, along with brief biographies of others mentioned in our story. They all give us a fascinating glimpse into the lives led in 17th century England and beyond.
Portrait of an anonymous lady, with added mask, c1675 Musee Cognacq-Jay.
Butler Chamberlain, daughter of a rich Jamaican colonial landowner and merchant. She ran away to sea and married Thomas Hewetson, a bigamist (unknowingly?), a brutal privateer and slaver. A 1690 comb case bears her married name.
Her second husband was Manuel Manasses Gilligan, a smuggler, secret agent for the English, and diplomat who played a part in the Treaty of Utrecht negotiations. Quite a life! Quite a girl!
Henry Morgan, whose life as a pirate, privateer and Lieutenant Governor divides opinion to this day. He sent a large case and comb set to Lord Arlington in 1676, now believed lost.
Public domain
Sir Hans Sloane, doctor, naturalist, collector and author of a major witten work on Jamaican natural history, along with popularising the drinking of chocolate in England.
Portrait of an anonymous lady, with added mask, c1675 Musee Cognacq-Jay.
Thomas Heather, vicar of Portsmouth, chaplain to the garrison stationed there, and after 1670 Chaplain in Ordinary to King Charles 11.
Lady Vere Lynch, thought for many years to have been the originator of the indiginous plant and tree designs seen on the tortoiseshell items.
Public domain
George Fox, founder of the Quaker movement, spent seven weeks in Jamaica in 1671/2, and was not impressed.: ‘The people are, many of them, debauched and wicked.’
Library of Congress, Washington
Jan Huygen van Linchoten, Dutch merchant, traveller and writer, with a spot of espionage thrown in. Author of ‘The Itinerario’ which for the first time detailed the secret Portuguese navigational trading routes to East Indies.