The Battle of Orange Walk by Dr. Angel Cal

by Charles Gladden

BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Nov. 21, 2024

In collaboration with the University of Belize (UB) and the National Institute of Culture and History (NICH), the ImagiNation Factri this morning, Thursday, November 21, presented the official launch of a book by Dr. Angel Cal entitled, “The Battle of Orange Walk”.

Photo: Dr. Angel Cal

The Battle of Orange Walk explores the historical records of the legendary resistance led by Marcos Canul in northern Belize. Through meticulous transcriptions, Dr. Cal provides the readers with a rare and compelling look into the narratives of resistance that have shaped Belize’s history.

“Today we honor not only this incredible book, but also the legacy of a man who has dedicated his life to advancing education, preserving history, and building a stronger Belize,” said Dr. Vincent Palacio, president of UB, during the launch.

“His work on the Battle of Orange Walk sheds light on a critical moment in our history, the courage of Marcos Canul and the Icaiche Maya, their fight for their land, and the resilience that defined us as a nation. It’s a story that resonates deeply with all of us, and reminds us of the strength and determination we carry forward,” he added.

Dr. Cal holds a Ph.D. in History and held the position of president at UB for over a decade, in addition to serving as history lecturer at the university.

“When we look at the history of our country—we look at the first roughly two and a half to three centuries of colonialism in Belize—it was the Belize Maya who blocked Spanish colonialism from taking over our country. But yet, when we talk about the patriots of Belize, it is seldom this was mentioned. Almost three centuries of resistance, and all the pain and the suffering and the dying that, that signified—I don’t know that there was one battle. There were battles, but the Maya did not become extinct,” said Dr. Cal.

Through UB’s History Department and Intercultural Indigenous Language Institute with NICH and the Belize Archives, the process of composition was carried out along with an intensive process of fact-checking, as there are many retellings of how the sequence of events occurred.

“This line of work takes a while, because even a word, even a phrase, has to be cross-checked. We have to find out what it means. To give you just one little example, when the magistrate Richard Downer of Orange Walk was captured by the Icaiche Maya during the battle, he was whipped, but not killed. So, we were trying to figure out, why he was only whipped. So, we have to go into other sources of information to find out, so that requires more research,” he said.

“In his version of what happened, Downer did not mention the whipping. We had to get that from other sources, that he was whipped. So, when we want to be as accurate as we can be, we have to be careful that we are not propagating any myths,” Dr. Cal pointed out.

The Battle of Orange Walk can bought at the ImagiNation Factri for $10.