The formation of communities of runaway slaves dates back to the presence of the Spaniards in America. There are a variety of reasons which forced the slaves to hide and seek refuge in palenques which were almost independent populated forts, which were attacked by authorities who were never able to completely destroy them. The forms of life, social and religious organization of the people living in these communities, were the result of a process of syncretism, combining African and Euro-American cultural elements that were built from the experiences of slaves in the mines on the large plantations and in the plantation houses where they worked and lived.