TY - JOUR

T1 - “It Is Only Bad Priests and Outlaws Who Thrive NowAdays”

T2 - The Catholic Church, the Colonial Authorities, and Elite Rumor Networks in the 1820s Lesser Antilles

AU - Fricke, Felicia

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - In Caribbean historiography, rumors are often associated with enslaved people and sailors; less often are they associated with elite men. This article addresses the use of rumor by elite men in the Lesser Antilles during the late 1820s, following the story of Antony O’Hannan, Roman Catholic rector of Grenada, whose relationship with his enslaved and free congregation made him dangerous to both Catholic and colonial authorities. Although the White Catholics of Grenada were often discriminated against, here they aligned with the wider Church in supporting the colonial power. Similarly, the colonial administration was willing to collaborate with Catholics, to activate an interisland rumor network that mobilized anxieties about O’Hannan’s perceived threat to White women. Using Colonial Office documents and Caribbean newspapers, this article explores microregional rumor as part of the arsenal used to maintain colonial order, and complicates the internal workings of the Catholic Church in the Caribbean.

AB - In Caribbean historiography, rumors are often associated with enslaved people and sailors; less often are they associated with elite men. This article addresses the use of rumor by elite men in the Lesser Antilles during the late 1820s, following the story of Antony O’Hannan, Roman Catholic rector of Grenada, whose relationship with his enslaved and free congregation made him dangerous to both Catholic and colonial authorities. Although the White Catholics of Grenada were often discriminated against, here they aligned with the wider Church in supporting the colonial power. Similarly, the colonial administration was willing to collaborate with Catholics, to activate an interisland rumor network that mobilized anxieties about O’Hannan’s perceived threat to White women. Using Colonial Office documents and Caribbean newspapers, this article explores microregional rumor as part of the arsenal used to maintain colonial order, and complicates the internal workings of the Catholic Church in the Caribbean.

KW - Faculty of Humanities

KW - Caribbean

KW - History

KW - Catholicism

KW - Rumors

KW - Elites

M3 - Journal article

JO - NWIG New West Indian Guide

JF - NWIG New West Indian Guide

SN - 1382-2373

ER -