The West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins was the Guild of Assassins located in the Caribbean region, founded in the early 16th century after the Assassins' spread to the New World in 1503. As of the 18th century, the Caribbean Assassins mirrored the organizational structure of the Levantine Brotherhood, with their headquarters located in Tulum and bureaus placed in Havana, Kingston, Nassau and the Cayman Islands.
History
Early history
In 1503, Ezio Auditore da Firenze sent a group of Assassins to Constantinople, where they managed to retrieve maps of the New World from Piri Reis' workshop. Realizing that the Templars were already expanding their influence to the new-found lands, the Assassins swiftly followed suit.[1] After these Assassin immigrants from Europe made contact with the indigenous peoples in the Caribbean, many natives joined the Order, finding similarities between their own way of living and the Assassin ideology.[2]
By 1510, the West Indies Assassins were known to be located in Florida, where they discovered and protected the Fountain of Youth, which held an Apple of Eden. That year, the Assassins welcomed the former slave and translator for the Spanish Army, Alonso Carlo, and his adopted son Miguel Ramón Carlo de Lugo, after their escape from persecution by Juan Ponce de León. In 1521, Ponce de León arrived in Florida searching for the Fountain of Youth, where he was halted by Miguel. After Ponce de León refused to stop his search, the Assassins shot him with poisoned arrows, ultimately leading to his death.[3]
In 1673, Thom Kavanagh, a native of Boston who worked at Peter Beckford's estate in Jamaica, was pursued by the Grand Master of the Caribbean Templars, Laureano de Torres y Ayala. Knowing Kavanagh to be a Sage, a reincarnation of Aita, Torres believed the man knew the location of the Observatory. In an effort to keep the Templars from learning the Observatory's location, the Assassins, with Bahlam, intercepted Kavanagh and brought him to Tulum. Kavanagh refused to share the Observatory's location with the Assassins, while he couldn't explain the visions that haunted him. Bahlam accepted the explanation, and let Kavanagh leave the island with the help of Bahlam's son, Ah Tabai.[2]
Under Ah Tabai
Four decades later, Ah Tabai became the Mentor of the West Indies Brotherhood, and made the recovery and protection of the Sage one of the Order's highest priorities. However, despite his efforts, the Assassins were not able to locate Kavanagh's successor before he was captured by the Templars.[2]
Under Ah Tabai's direction, the West Indies Brotherhood grew vast and expanded throughout the Caribbean, establishing bureaus stationed in Havana, Kingston, Nassau and the Cayman Islands. Ah Tabai maintained contact with the British, North American and Chinese Brotherhoods at the time.[2]
In 1698, Ah Tabai recruited Antó, a Maroon leader who rose in the ranks of the Brotherhood, effectively becoming the Kingston bureau leader. Some time later, Rhona Dinsmore, Opía Apito, Vance Travers and Mary Read were inducted into the Order, with the first three becoming bureau leaders of Havana, the Cayman Islands and Nassau, respectively.[2]
Ah Tabai tasked the Assassin Duncan Walpole with leading a team to rescue the Sage, unaware that Walpole had defected to the Templar Order and intended to assist them. Duncan failed in his task however, due to his demise at the hands of the pirate Edward Kenway. Kenway then unknowingly harmed the Assassins by delivering the locations of bureaus in the Caribbean, as well as a blood vial, to Torres and the Templars.[2]
Assassins attempting to rescue Roberts
Torres revealed that the new Sage was a man by the name of Bartholomew Roberts whom they intended to interrogate to uncover the location of the Observatory. The Assassins attempted to free Roberts via ground assault in Havana and were ultimately unsuccessful, though Roberts later managed to escape Templar custody.[2]
In 1716, Tulum was attacked by a British regiment led by a Templar-allied slaver Laurens Prins. Kenway, with the help of Mary Read, managed to defend the Assassin encampment and push back the attackers, though Tulum was continually assaulted by the Templars in the following years. Edward became an uneasy ally of the Assassins, tracking the Templars who hunted the bureau leaders across the Caribbean.[2]
In 1722, after repeated attacks on Tulum from both the Royal and Spanish Navy, Kenway offered his hideout on Great Inagua to the Brotherhood. Ah Tabai accepted and eventually moved the Order to the new location, though he expressed concern that their headquarters might be compromised again. He therefore decided to scatter the Order among the people, similar to what Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad did with the Levantine Assassins in the 12th century.[2]
In 1723, Ah Tabai appointed a faction of Assassins to guard the Observatory along with the indigenous Guardians.[4]
In the mid 1730s, Ah Tabai recruited Achilles Davenport as his last student.[5] In 1735, Adéwalé—a previous student of Ah Tabai—intercepted a Templar ship containing a parcel, which inside held the Precursor box. Adéwalé was shipwrecked and left marooned on Port-au-Prince, during which time he aided the Maroon rebellion by recruiting warrior slaves to the cause, helping in their struggle against the French Army.[6]
In 1738, the leader of the Maroons, François Mackandal, broke from the West Indies Brotherhood with his own branch established at Saint-Dominigue. Believing that the mainstream Assassins' preference for peaceful compromises was a weakness, he promoted his own radical reinterpretation of the Creed: that it permitted the use of any means fit to achieve an ends, rather than served as a warning against extremism. He rejected Antó's offer for assistance and even threatened the West Indies Brotherhood should they interfere with his operations.[5]
Around 1740, Achilles was sent to the North American colonies to establish a branch there. Ah Tabai would continue to correspond with Achilles on his progress, until the former's death around 1745.[5]
After the death of Torres, Rhona Dinsmore's Assassins soon took control of the underworld in Havana. In 1751, the Templar Rafael Joaquín de Ferrer seduced Dinsmore, and was able to steal her maps of the Yucatán Peninsula. As she was too busy keeping Havana safe from conflict between the colonial empires, Rhona requested Achilles to eliminate de Ferrer if given the opportunity.[5]
Origins and appearance
The West Indies Assassins were composed of individuals from a host of different cultures and backgrounds; some had come from far overseas, while others belonged to local tribes.[2]
Generally, the robes worn by the West Indies Assassins' hearkened back to those worn by the Levantine Assassins, being white and ankle-length, accompanied by a red sash around the waist. The men's attire was heavier than that of the women, which appeared more heavily-influenced by tribal dress, baring the arms, middle, legs and feet. While the robes were hooded, they were not beaked.[2]
A few prominent Assassins within the West Indies Brotherhood eschewed the more traditional attire for unique robes; among these were the Mentor, Ah Tabai, as well as Antó, Opía Apito and Adéwalé. Both Mary Read and Rhona Dinsmore opted for clothing that was more typical of pirates, which fit with their respective backgrounds.[2]
Techniques
Most, if not all, West Indies Assassins used dual Hidden Blades. They also used blowpipes, smoke bombs, pistols and rope darts.[2]
Members
Allies and puppets
- Alonzo Batilla
- Samuel Bellamy (British branch)
- Anne Bonny
- Augustin Dieufort
- Bastienne Josèphe
- François Mackandal (Haitian branch)
- Olivier Levasseur
References
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy - Contracts
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Revelations – Discover Your Legacy
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Unity
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Assassin's Creed: Rogue
- ↑ Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag – Freedom Cry
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