Petition
Petition. December 28, 1662. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Document Text |
Summary |
| Mayken Van Angola, Lucretia Albiecke van Angola, and the wife of Peter Tamboer all humbly request the government to release us from slavery so we can be together in our old age and earn our income with our work along with other free blacks . . . | Mayken Van Angola and two of her friends ask the government to grant them freedom so that can take care of one another in their old age. |
| The supplicants’ request is approved provided that they take turns doing the housework of the Lord General Peter Stuyvesant one day every week. | The government approves their request as long as they agree to take turns cleaning the house of Director Peter Stuyvesant. |
Petition. December 28, 1662. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Petition
Petition. April 19, 1663. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Document Text |
Summary |
| As two of the three women from the petition dated December 28, 1662 have died, and because she is an old, weak woman who has been a slave since the year 1628 and suffers from an injury from a long ago accident, Mayken van Angola requests that the government take pity on her and allow her to live the rest of her remaining time in freedom with the other free blacks of New Amsterdam . . . | Mayken makes a second request for freedom because her two friends have died. She also reminds the government that she has been enslaved since 1628, and tells it that she suffers pain from an old injury. |
Petition. April 19, 1663. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Certificate
Certificate. April 17, 1664. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Document Text |
Summary |
| In the name of and on behalf of the lords Directors of the Dutch West India Company, we permit the negress Mayken to be made free so that she can make her living in an honest way like any free black person . . . | The government finally agrees to set Mayken free without any conditions. |
Certificate. April 17, 1664. New York State Archives. Translation by Eric Ruijssenaars.
Background
The Dutch government had no clearly established laws governing slavery in the 1600s. In the colony of New Netherland, enslaved people could marry, attend religious services, receive payment for their work, and petition the government. In 1644, the enslaved people of New Netherland took advantage of this circumstance and began petitioning for their freedom. Many of these petitions were approved, but there were often limits to the freedom that enslaved people were granted.
About the Document
Mayken van Angola’s two-year quest for freedom began in 1662, thirty-four years after she was first brought to the colony as a slave for the Dutch West India Company. These three documents chronicle her fight for freedom. They show how enslaved people of New Netherland negotiated with the Dutch West India Company, and the stumbling blocks that could get in their way.
Vocabulary
- Dutch West India Company: The company that owned and ran New Netherland.
- petition: A written request submitted to a powerful person.
- supplicant: A person who asks for something from a powerful person.
Pronunciation
- Mayken van Angola: MAY-kin van An-GO-luh
- Lucretia Albiecke van Angola: Loo-CREE-shu AL-beek van An-GO-luh
Discussion Questions
- What reasons does Mayken give for needing her freedom? What does this reveal about the attitude of the Dutch West India Company toward enslaved people?
- What is the first condition of Mayken’s freedom? Why do you think the Company put in this condition? Why does she submit another petition only four months after the first one?
- What does Mayken’s story teach us about the experience of enslaved people in the Dutch colonies?
Suggested Activities
- Compare and contrast Mayken van Angola’s petitions for freedom with those of other enslaved Black colonials in New Netherland (see the New-York Historical Society’s New World—New Netherland—New York curriculum). Why are the experiences so different? What does this tell us about the Dutch laws governing slavery?
- Combine this document with the life story of Lisbeth Anthonijsen to create a lesson about the attitudes of the Dutch colonial authorities toward Black women in their colony.
- Mayken van Angola’s name means she was from the African region of Angola, and probably endured the Middle Passage before she ended up in New Netherland. Combine this document with the Middle Passage ship log for a more complete picture of Mayken’s life as an enslaved woman.
- Compare Mayken’s quest for freedom with that of Marie-Josèphe Angélique in New France. Why did these women try different approaches to gaining their freedom? What do their stories reveal about the