1774 Menel Madagascar
A mid-winter fight between slaves over who would sleep by the fire gives a brief insight into living conditions on this farm at Riebeek-Kasteel. Unusually, the farm had a separate ‘slave house’.1 The case was considered serious enough to be sent to the Council of Justice and Menel was given a life sentence on Robben Island.2
Footnotes
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Most Cape farms did not have a slave labour force large enough to warrant separate slave living quarters of the kind found in Atlantic plantation slave societies, but there were, as in this case, exceptions (see 1768 Frans van Madagascar for unusually extensive slave quarters). See 1745 Cupido van Bengalen, n. 1 for a discussion. ↩
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Menel’s case was first heard by the Council of Justice on 21 July 1774, but was held over until 18 August when Menel (then referred to as Menel van Mosambicque) was sentenced to be publicly whipped and branded, and sent to labour for life on the public works on Robben Island, CJ 56, ff. 39-40 and 46-7. This was the sentence recommended by the eijsch, CJ 407, f. 428 [modern pagination]. The testimonies of Menel and of Julij van Bengalen are in CJ 407, ff. 431-38 [modern pagination]. ↩
1/STB 3/11 Criminele Verklaringen, 1759-1782, unpaginated.
Statement given, on the requisition of the honourable landdrost, Martinus Adrianus Bergh, by the slave Julij van Bengalen, of competent age, bondsman of the burgher Christoffel Lombard, which is of the following content, namely:
That some days ago now, during the evening, when the testifier, together with his fellow slaves Cupido van Bengalen and Menel van Madagascar, was in the slave house on his owner’s farm situated at Riebeek-Kasteel, he lay down to rest while the aforementioned Cupido and Menel, as they are accustomed to doing, went to lie down at the fireplace there, without the testifier, since he was tired from working and fell asleep immediately, seeing or hearing anything of them that evening.
That when the testifier got up in the morning and found the aforesaid Cupido still lying in bed, he asked him what was wrong with him, why was he not getting up and if he was ill. He received as an answer from the same that on the previous evening, the aforementioned Menel fell out with him over their sleeping places by the fire and that he, Menel, had hit Cupido with a spade on his head; which Cupido then also came to die seven days after this.
There being nothing further to relate, the testifier asserts to be convinced of the accuracy of his statement as in the text, being willing to subsequently confirm the above, if so required.
Thus related at the office of the secretary in Stellenbosch on 2 July 1774 in the presence of the beadle Johannes Jacobus Reijniersz and the burgher Johannes Engel, requested as witnesses hereto.
This mark X was set down by the slave July with his own hand.
As witnesses, [signed] J.J. Reijniers, J. Engel.
With my cognisance, [signed] A. Faure, secretary.
Relaas gegeven, ter requisitie van den heer landdrost, Marthinus Adrianus Bergh, door den slaaf Julij van Bengalen, van competenten ouderdom, lijfeigen van den burger Christoffel Lombard, zijnde van den volgenden inhoud, namentlijk:
Dat nu eenige dagen geleden, wanneer den relatant, nevens de mede slaven Cupido van Bengalen en Menel van Madagascar, zig des avonds in ’t slavenhuijs ter zijner lijfheers plaats, geleegen aan ’t Ribeeks [sic] Casteel bevonden, en hij relatant zig ter ruste gelegd had, voormelde Cupido en Menel, gelijk zij dat gewoon waren, zig bij den vuurhaard aldaar hebben gaan nederleggen, zonder dat hij relatant, als vermoeijt van ’t werken geweest en schielijk ingeslapen zijnde, dien avond van hun iets gesien nog gehoord had.
Dat den relatant des morgens opgestaan en voorseijde Cupido nog te bed leggende bevonden hebbende, hem had gevraagd wat hem schortede [sic] dat hij niet opstond, en of hij ziek was? Van denselven ten antwoord bekomen had dat meergemelde slaaf Menel des vorigen avonds met hem rusie gekregen hebbende over hunne slaapplaatsen bij ’t vuur, hij Menel hem Cupido met een graaf op ’t hoofd geslagen had, welken Cupido dan ook seven dagen daarna was komen te sterven.
Anders niet relateerende, geeft den relatant voor reedenen van wetenschap als in den text, bereijd zijnde het vorenstaande, des vereijscht werdende, nader te zullen gestand doen.
Aldus gerelateerd ter secretarije aan Stellenbosch, den 2e Julij 1774, in ’t bijweesen van de koster Johannes Jacobus Reijniersz en den burger Johannes Engel, als getuijgen hiertoe versogt.
Dit merk X is door den slaaf Julij eijgenhandig gesteld.
Als getuijgen, [get.] J.J. Reijniers, J. Engel.
In kennisse van mij, [get.] A. Faure, secretaris.