Ayuba Suleiman Diallo - Essay Example

Bibliography: Ayuba Suleiman Diallo due: Table of Contents Who is Ayuba Suleiman Diallo? 3 Ayuba Suleiman Diallo 3 (With an introduction by Thomas Bluett) 3 Ayuba Suleiman Diallo 5 (From a researcher’s perspective) 5 Conclusion 7 Annotated Bibliography 8 Bibliography 13 Who is Ayuba Suleiman Diallo? Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, also known as Job Solomon by the Europeans, was a Black Muslim from a family of religious leaders who was a victim of the transatlantic slave trade. In 1730, Ayuba was captured at his homeland and ended up in Maryland where he was enslaved for two years until his escape and return by the help of Thomas Bluett. His story is told by Bluett in his memoir. Diallo and Bluett met in the county of Kent during a time when Ayuba was imprisoned there. They became friends, and this led to his freedom.1 Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (With an introduction by Thomas Bluett) According to Bluett’s memoirs, In February 1730, upon hearing that there was a ship docked at the Gambia River, Ayuba’s father sent him to sell two slaves to the captain of the ship, he was also to buy paper and other necessities.2 During the trade, Ayuba could agree on a price with the captain of the ship, Captain Pike. He instead decided to cross the river to the country of Mandingoes who were the enemy of the people of Futa and sold the slaves to another African trader who bought them for two cows.3 On his return home, a group of Mandingoes raider captured and enslaved him. The raiders shaved Ayuba’s head, a sign of indignity, so as to appear like the other slaves.4 After all this, they went ahead and sold him as a slave to the whites. Ironically, the buyer was Captain Pike, the same buyer that he had tried to negotiate a price with for the two slaves he had earlier been sent to sell by his father. After some period of trading at river Gambia, Captain Pike’s ship sailed, and in it was Ayuba Suleiman Diallo. According to Bluett’s memoir, the ship was heading to Maryland, a British colony on the North America. On board the ship, Ayuba found means to talk to the captain, he told him that he was the same man whom they had tried to negotiate a price for the two slaves some days back.5 Captain Pike, gave Ayuba a chance to send a message to his father explaining the situation and asking for help. This message could not reach his father before it was too late for they were close to docking at Maryland. Upon arrival, Ayuba and the other slaves were delivered to their new owner, Mr. Rachel Denton. During the journey to London, Ayuba was very devoted and consistent in prayers.6 He also learnt English. Upon arrival in England, he was offered a place to stay by Captain Hunt, who was his host. At this period, they had parted with Mr. Bluett, but when he, Ayuba, heard a rumor that Mr. Hunt was planning to sell him contacted Mr. Bluett and told him of the rumor. Mr. Bluett offered him refuge in London. In England, Ayuba had made himself known, and he had also made many friends one of them Sir Hans Sloan, who dressed him and introduced him to Her Majesty, the Queen. She was pleased by Ayuba’s courage and personality and presented him with a gold watch.7 He even dined with the Duke and Dutchess of Montague and other Nobilities. Ayuba’s high-end friend rewarded him with a chance to return to his homeland and in addition, they gave him many rich presents. In 1734, Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, who was known the English as Job, left on a ship bound for Gambia.8 Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (From a researcher’s perspective) Having being sold accidentally as a slave, he was delivered to his owner Mr. Rachel Denton in Maryland. Mr. Denton then sold Ayuba to Mr. Tosley, who lived in Kent, an island in Maryland. Mr. Tosley, the new owner of Ayuba, sent him to work in his Tobacco farm. Having not been exposed to such labor, he grew uneasy working at the farm as each day passed. It did not take long before Mr. Tosley noticed that Ayuba was used to such hard labor so he was asked to tend to Tosley’s cattle instead. Being from a family of religious leaders, he would often leave the cattle and go to the wood to pray. During his devotion, a white boy who used to watch him as he hid to pray, would mock him and throw dirt at his face. However, not being interested in the English language, he could not report this to anyone.9 Forced by the harshness of his working conditions, Ayuba plotted escapes, and he finally managed to escape in the wood to a neighboring county of Kent. However, in Kent there was a law that any Negro who wasn’t known in the count and had no pass would be imprisoned till his master came to fetch him or her and not being able to explain himself, he was imprisoned.10 During this time in prison, Ayuba was summoned before Thomas Bluett, a merchant from Chesnut, and other gentlemen who had an interest in him. Not being able to speak English, Ayuba could not communicate with them but when given a piece of paper, he wrote two words that were read to mean Allah and Mohammed. This and his refusal to take a glass of wine he was offered, the gentlemen knew he was Muslim.11 According to Grant, 2013, when still in prison he found a fellow inmate who spoke Jalloff- a language that Ayuba could understand. This inmate was able to translate for him, and so the white knew him more. It was found that he was from an aristocratic bloodline. This encourages Mr. Tosley, who then allowed Ayuba to contact his father. Ayuba wrote a letter to his father in Arabic and sent it to Africa. It was during this time that Ayuba was bought by yet another master, Mr. James Oglethorpe who was Director of the Royal African Company. Mr. James was moved by his personality and by the suffering he had endured, so he sent him to London along with Mr. Bluett.12 During the journey to London, Ayuba was very devoted and consistent in prayers and the other people on board the ship even allowed him to kill the sea animals so that he too can it. He also learnt English. Upon arrival in England, he was offered a place to stay by Captain Hunt, who was his host. At this period, they had parted with Mr. Bluett, but when he, Ayuba, heard a rumor that Mr. Hunt was planning to sell him contacted Mr. Bluett and told him of the rumor. Mr. Bluett offered him refuge in London. In England, Ayuba had made himself known, and he had also made many friends one of them Sir Hans Sloan, who dressed him and introduced him to Her Majesty, the Queen. She was pleased by Ayuba’s courage and personality and presented him with a gold watch. He even dined with the Duke and Dutchess of Montague and other Nobilities. Ayuba’s high-end friend rewarded him with a chance to return to his homeland and in addition, they gave him many rich presents. In 1734, Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, who was known the English as Job, left on a ship bound for Gambia.13 Upon arriving home after two year of absence as a slave, he found that his homeland had being ravaged by war, his father had being a victim of the war and lost his life and his second wife had remarried at some point in his absence.14 However, he reestablished himself due to having links with prominent people in England. He also won the freedom of his translator whom they had met in prison. His translator returned to Gambia in 1738.15 Conclusion Ayuba despite coming from a family of Muslim religious leader, he endured life as a slave for two years. He suffered harsh conditions working in tobacco farm and in cattle ranch. He was mocked due to his strong religious beliefs, but that did not affect his faith.16 He plotted and attempted escapes, and it was during one of his escapes that he found a way to his freedom.17 Despite being sold accidentally as a slave and undergoing harsh treatments as a slave, Ayuba finally found his way back home having made friends with many prominent people in England.18 He went ahead to become a prominent person in Gambia even though his father was killed in the war and his second wife remarrying during his absence. He kept touch with the prominent people in England while in the home. His account provides insight information of how life was during the eighteenth century in America from how slave were treated to how they could make friends with prominent people. Thomas Bluett’s memoir is the main source of information about Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, but many scholars have researched and inscribed books and articles about him. His story is used to enlighten scholar of how the transatlantic slave trade was back then. Annotated Bibliography 1. Bluett, Thomas. Some Memoirs of the Life of Job: The Son of Solomon the High Priest of Boonda in Africa; who was a Slave about Two Years in Maryland; and Afterwards Being Brought to England, was Set Free, and Sent to His Native Land in the Year 1734. By Thomas Bluett,...Vol. 9. Richard Ford, 1734. This is a description of the life of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo by Thomas Bluett. Bluett was later involved in Ayuba’s life. He was also responsible for his freedom. This is the main source of information about Ayuba Suleiman giving detailed accounts of Ayuba. What lead exactly to his capture and release after two years of hardship in Maryland. 2. Lofkrantz, Jennifer, and Olatunji Ojo. "SLAVERY, FREEDOM, AND FAILED RANSOM NEGOTIATIONS IN WEST AFRICA, 1730–1900." The Journal of African History 53, no. 01 (2012): 25-44. This article gives an account of Ayuba’s life. How he was captured in Gambia River, taken to Maryland as a slave for about two years. He was a slave till he finally ended up in England, was set free and sent to his native land. 3. Piersen, William Dillon. Black legacy: Americas hidden heritage. Univ of Massachusetts Press, 1993. William Piersen gives an account of Africans who appeared at the English Court. Among these Africans, was Job Ben Solomon, who was highly celebrated. Ayuba dined with the royal family and other prominent people in the English Society. In fact, he was well recognised by them that they rewarded him with an expensive present before leaving for his native land. 4. Fryer, Peter. Staying power: the history of black people in Britain. University of Alberta, 1984. This is an account of Ayuba Suleiman’s rise to popularity while in England. His struggles and successes are narrated in this book. Struggles like working a tobacco firm where he experienced difficulties working since he wasn’t used to such hard labor and successes like meeting Her Majesty, the Queen of England who gave him a gold watch as a present. 5. Grant, Douglas. The fortunate slave: an illustration of African slavery in the early eighteenth century. Oxford UP, 1968. In this book, Douglas also writes a detailed life of Ayuba as according to Bluett Memoir. He tells of how Ayuba was captured, enslaved and ended up dining with the Duke and Duchess of Montague. Having caught the attention and interest of Thomas Bluett, he taught him English and introduced him to many prominent people who later granted him his freedom. 6. Turner, Richard Brent. Islam in the African-American experience. Indiana University Press, 2003. This book gives a religious account of the life of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo. He was raised in a household of Muslim Imam, and he was noted to pray whenever he faced a tough issue. He accounts how Ayuba was mock and thrown dirt upon by a white boy. This did not please him but since he could not speak English he could not report the matter to the authorities. 7. Eltis, David. "The US transatlantic slave trade, 1644–1867: An assessment." Civil War History 54, no. 4 (2008): 347-378. This is an article by Eltis in which he gives a brief account of Ayuba’s life. In it, he tells how Ayuba was capture and how his life as a slave was. But he refers to Bluett memoir. Although this essay is brief, it captures most of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo’s life history. Like where he hailed from and how he ended up a slave and how he found his way back home. 8. Lugo-Ortiz, Agnes, and Angela Rosenthal, eds. Slave Portraiture in the Atlantic World. Cambridge University Press, 2013. This book gives a detailed account of Ayuba Suleiman. It starts by his capture and enslavement then how he ended up working in a tobacco farm and how he finally got his freedom. The author also identifies Thomas Bluett, a white who help Ayuba find his freedom, as a merchant from Chesnut, who used another interpreter to find out more about Ayuba’s story. 9. Diouf, Sylviane A. Servants of Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the Americas. NYU Press, 2013. This book focuses mostly on the Islamic religion in general, by the author mentions and describes Ayuba Suleiman Diallo as one of the first Muslims in America. He gives a detailed account of his religious life and the struggle he went through as a Muslim slave. 10. Lockard, Craig. Societies, Networks, and Transitions, Volume 2: Since 1450. Cengage Learning, 2010. This was Craig Lockard’s second volume on global history after his 2007 Societies, Networks and Transitions: Volume II: A Global History. It tells of Ayuba’s misfortunes and how he went from being an educated prince of West Africa to being a slave in the United States and later in Britain. 11. Weaver, Jace. The Red Atlantic: Transoceanic Cultural Exchanges. The American Indian Quarterly 35, no. 3 (2011): 418-463. In this book, Weaver gives a detailed account of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, the son of Muslim Imam. This book explains how Ayuba met Bluett and how his life was both as a slave and as a free man in England. How he wrote to his father asking him to help him find his liberty but all in vain. 12. Penrice, Ronda Racha. African American History for Dummies. John Wiley & Sons, 2011. In this book, Ronda Racha gives an insight on historical events between Africans and Americans during the slave trade period. Ayuba Suleiman was one of the few slavery captives who managed to escape captivity and return home. She tells the readers of how Ayuba wrote letters of his father in Arabic since he did not know English. 13. Bulliet, Richard. The Earth and Its Peoples, A Global History, AP* Edition. Cengage Learning, 2010. This is one of the most credible details of Ayuba Suleiman’s life since it is written by Richard Bulliet who met Ayuba while he was in prison at Kent County. Bluett admired Ayuba’s strong religious belief and his ability to write though in Arabic. He gives an account of how he taught him English on their voyage from Maryland to England and how he ended up making friends with many prominent people. 14. Diallo, Ayuba Suleiman, and Job ben Solomon. "Ayuba Suleiman Diallo." age 71 (1773): 72. This article gives the history of Ayuba. It also reveals how slaves were mistreated and force to work in harsh conditions. How hard it was for him toiling in the tobacco farm. It also tells the time in which he met Bluett and made friends with many prominent people. 15. Irele, Abiola. "In search of camara laye." Research in African Literatures 37, no. 1 (2006): 110-127. This is a poem in which Okri narrates the life of Ayuba. He mentions the struggle he went through and how he finally went back home in glory. He goes ahead and glorifies Ayuba for representing the blacks in the world of the white. And, how prominent people in England, including the Royal family, showered Ayuba with costly presents. 16. Jarrett, Gene Andrew, ed. A companion to African American literature. John Wiley & Sons, 2010. This book gives narratives on the lives of the earliest slaves from 1760 to 1734 focusing on their travel and communicative influence at that time. It mentions Ayuba Suleiman who was sold to the white and taken to Maryland. It also mentions his attempt to contact his father via letter but due to unfavorable conditions, and he could not do it in time to save himself. 17. Haskins, James, and Kathleen Benson. Africa: A Look Back. Marshall Cavendish, 2006. This book discussed the life history of an African man who was seized and sold as a slave. This man, Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, struggle in captivity and finally found his way back home after making friends with some prominent people in England. 18. Hammer, Juliane, and Omid Safi, eds. The Cambridge Companion to American Islam. Cambridge University Press, 2013. Religious diversity in America in the 18th century is discussed in this book. While explaining Muslim, the authors give some information about Ayuba Suleiman Diallo who despite being enslaved never lost his faith in Muslim. He used to pray even when he was mocked. Bibliography Ayuba Suleiman Diallo and Slavery in the Atlantic World. The Trans-Atlantic Voyages. Da Silve Domingues Daniel. 2007. Bluett, Thomas. Some Memoirs of the Life of Job: The Son of Solomon the High Priest of Boonda in Africa; who was a Slave about Two Years in Maryland; and Afterwards Being Brought to England, was Set Free, and Sent to His Native Land in the Year 1734. By Thomas Bluett,... Vol. 9. Richard Ford, 1734. Diouf, Sylviane A. Servants of Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the Americas. NYU Press, 2013. Eltis, David. "The US transatlantic slave trade, 1644–1867: An assessment." Civil War History 54, no. 4 (2008): 347-378. Fryer, Peter. Staying power: the history of black people in Britain. University of Alberta, 1984. Grant, Douglas. The fortunate slave: an illustration of African slavery in the early eighteenth century. Oxford UP, 1968. Hammer, Juliane, and Omid Safi, eds. The Cambridge Companion to American Islam. Cambridge University Press, 2013. Haskins, James, and Kathleen Benson. Africa: A Look Back. Marshall Cavendish, 2006. Irele, Abiola. "In search of camara laye." Research in African Literatures 37, no. 1 (2006): 110 127. Jarrett, Gene Andrew, ed. A companion to African American literature. John Wiley & Sons, 2010. Lockard, Craig. Societies, Networks, and Transitions, Volume 2: Since 1450. Cengage Learning, 2010. Lofkrantz, Jennifer, and Olatunji Ojo. "SLAVERY, FREEDOM, AND FAILED RANSOM NEGOTIATIONS IN WEST AFRICA, 1730–1900." The Journal of African History 53, no. 01 (2012): 25-44. Lugo-Ortiz, Agnes, and Angela Rosenthal, eds. Slave Portraiture in the Atlantic World. Cambridge University Press, 2013. Penrice, Ronda Racha. African American History for Dummies. John Wiley & Sons, 2011. Piersen, William Dillon. Black legacy: Americas hidden heritage. Univ of Massachusetts Press, 1993. Turner, Richard Brent. Islam in the African-American experience. Indiana University Press, 2003. Weaver, Jace. The Red Atlantic: Transoceanic Cultural Exchanges. The American Indian Quarterly 35, no. 3 (2011): 418-463. Read More