The Cruelty of Lolonois

This document from the Colonial Crucible period is an excerpt from the book, The Buccaneers of America (1678), a collection of eyewitness accounts by Alexander Exquemelin, a French surgeon, who details the actions of certain pirates through his own journey with them through the Americas. In the section of the book titled, “The Cruelty of Lolonois,” Exquemelin describes Francois Lolonois’, a French pirate, execution of his plan to travel to Lake Nicaragua and steal from all the nearby towns and villages. The actions described in this account depict further instances of cruelty experienced by the Natives from the Europeans, a common occurrence during the Colonial Crucible period, which demonstrates a continuation of practices from the Encounter period.

For example, during Lolonois’ journey to Lake Nicaragua, he and his men stopped at Matamano, on the southern side of Cuba, and stole canoes, which were needed to travel upriver to Nicaragua, from the Natives (Exquemelin 2000). This act of theft authorized by Lolonois and performed by him and his men demonstrates the type of harsh treatment the Natives continued to endure from the Encounter period and into the Colonial Crucible period. Moreover, as Lolonois and his men continued on their journey toward Lake Nicaragua, the wind and currents ultimately pushed them to the Gulf of Honduras, where the men ran low on supplies and decided to steal maize, turkeys, chicken, pigs, wheat, and other possessions from the Natives (Exquemelin 2000). Once more, Lolonois and men’s plundering of Native belongings highlights the inhumane treatment faced by the Natives as a result of European actions beginning from the Encounter period and extending into the Colonial Crucible period.

Works Cited

Exquemelin, A. O. The Buccaneers of America. Mineola, N.Y: Dover Publications, 2000.

By: Giovanny Bravo