Elisabeth Samson, Forbidden Bride

In the 18th century tropical Dutch colony of Suriname, wealth is measured by the number of slaves one owns. The Free Negress Elisabeth Samson, educated and wealthy owner of coffee plantations and hundreds of slaves, lives with a white military lieutenant, Carl Otto Creutz. Dutch law forbids marriage between black and white, so their relationship is called "Suriname marriage" by the colonists and "living in sin" by the Dutch Reformed Church.

Elisabeth Samson, Forbidden Bride is a fiction based on the true story of the first black woman to successfully challenge marriage laws upheld by the colonial Governor, the white planters who make up the Courts of Justice and Police, and Holland’s Society of Suriname. These powerful forces call her "whore", covet her property, and accuse her of treason.

Elisabeth Samson’s story is seen against a background of military conflict between plantation owners and runaway slaves, the Maroons who have established secret villages deep in the rainforest.

Rich with emotion and historical detail, Elisabeth Samson, Forbidden Bride takes place in a dramatic period in the history of the steamy South American country of Suriname, formerly Dutch Guiana. It’s the inspiring story of one woman who risked her wealth and her life to defy a long-established double stand