Burn 2019

In the year 1844, the British Admiralty embarks on a covert mission by dispatching Sir William Walker, an agent provocateur, to the island of Queimada—a prosperous Portuguese colony located in the Lesser Antilles. This operation, initiated by the British government, aims to facilitate the economic exploitation of the island by the Antilles Royal Sugar Company. Tasked with instigating a rebellion among the enslaved Africans against their Portuguese overlords, Walker’s ultimate goal is to replace the existing regime with a government that is more compliant and favorable to the interests of white planters.

Upon his arrival at the island, Walker is drawn into the vibrant life of Queimada and soon befriends the captivating leader José Dolores. By leveraging his charm and persuasive skills, Walker convinces Dolores to rally the enslaved population and lead the revolt against their oppressors. Influencing key landowners, he stirs their discontent with Portuguese rule, which helps set the stage for the uprising. The rebellion under Dolores is a tremendous success, leading to a striking nighttime coup where Walker cunningly orchestrates the assassination of the Portuguese governor.

With the old regime overthrown, Walker establishes a puppet government strictly loyal to the Antilles Company, headed by the earnest yet ineffective revolutionary Teddy Sanchez. Through manipulation, Walker persuades Dolores to endorse the new government and lay down his arms, promising that their efforts would culminate in the abolition of slavery. Once this mission is deemed successful, Walker is swiftly reassigned to a new operation in Indochina.

Fast forward to 1848, we find a disillusioned Dolores who, repulsed by the new regime’s collusion with the Antilles Company, ignites a second uprising with the ambition of expelling British influence from Queimada. This conflict drags on for six long years until, by 1854, the Antilles Company decides to re-deploy Walker, who is discovered in Plymouth, England, and commands the Admiralty’s approval for his return to Queimada with a menacing mission. His instructions: to quell the burgeoning rebellion and reassert control over the island.

However, President Sanchez, filled with resentment towards the exploitation of Queimada, proves to be a thorn in Walker’s side. A swift coup, engineered by Walker, results in Sanchez’s ousting and subsequent execution. With a firm hand, Walker constructs a government that is submissive to the Antilles Company. British forces, under Walker’s direction, swiftly crush the rebellion and capture Dolores, who then finds himself confronted by the man who once helped him rise to power. Walker, feeling a pang of guilt over their shared history, desperately attempts to save Dolores from the gallows. Yet, Dolores, embodying the spirit of true freedom, rejects Walker’s offer, stating emphatically that “> Freedom is earned, not received.”

Sadly, the narrative reaches a tragic conclusion with the execution of Dolores by hanging. Shortly afterward, a remorseful Walker is confronted as he prepares to leave Queimada. He is approached by a man who eerily mirrors Dolores’s welcome upon Walker’s original arrival on the island, only to be brutally stabbed to death. As he fades away, Walker’s dying gaze sweeps across the somber faces of the impoverished inhabitants of the port, each bearing silent witness to the chaos he has wrought upon their lives.