1892 - Paul Bogle Declared a National Hero of Jamaica Posthumously

On June 6, 1892, Paul Bogle, a Baptist deacon and leader of the Morant Bay Rebellion, was officially recognized posthumously as a national hero of Jamaica. Bogle led the 1865 uprising against oppressive British colonial rule and economic injustice in St. Thomas Parish. Though he was captured and hanged shortly after the rebellion, his actions sparked intense debate in Britain and helped accelerate discussions around reform in colonial governance. Despite his execution, Bogle\’s vision for equality endured. It wasn’t until June 6, 1892—over 25 years later—that Jamaican and British authorities began the process of acknowledging the injustice of his death. Today, Paul Bogle’s legacy is commemorated on Jamaican currency and at the National Heroes Park. This early effort at historical recognition, well before Jamaica’s independence in 1962, illustrates how Black resistance movements were remembered and reclaimed across the diaspora—even under colonial rule.