brief history of haiti

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“In 1789 the French colony of Saint Domingue supplied two-thirds of the overseas trade of France and was the greatest individual

market for the European slave-trade. It was an integral part of the economic life of the age, the greatest colony in the world, the pride of

France, and the envy of every other imperialist nation. The whole structure rested on the labour of half-a-million slaves.”

C.L.R. James, 1938

Brief history of Haïti

A quick journey into the history, economy, and social struggles of Haïti

E. M. Maximilienhttp://maximilien.org

IBM Research - Almaden

with contributions from Pierre-Richard Maximilien

v1.0.0

Black History Month “Tribute to Haiti”IBM Silicon Valley Labs - 18 February 2010

“L’Union fait la Force”

http://maximilien.org/


Agenda

• Pre-Columbian era (before 1492)

• Christopher Columbus (1492 - 1503)

• Hispaniola (1503 - 1697)

• Saint-Domingue (1697 - 1751)

• Toussaint and the revolution (1751 - 1804)

• A new nation is born: Dessalines, Christophe, Pétion, and the early years

• Struggles and first american occupation (1914 - 1957)

• Papa and baby doc (1957 - 1986), ephemeral governments (1987 - 1990)

• Modern day Haïti: democracy and restoration (1990 - present day)

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Pre-Columbian (before 1492)

• Various “indian” tribes divided the entire island into six caciques

• Mostly the Taíno tribes and Caribe, named the island Kiskeya

• Taíno are peaceful people, lived from land hunting and fishing

• Queen Anacaona, wife of Caonabo, princess of Xaragua

• Island is rich in gold and other natural resources

5


Christopher Columbus

• Columbus arrives in present day Môle Saint Nicolas on December 5th, 1492

• The Santa Maria sinks in the shores of Cap Haitian

• Columbus leaves 39 men behind which forms first settlement La Navidad

‣ indians kill the settlers because they tried to steal gold and wives

‣ first resistance from indians, mostly Caonabo then Guaganagaric

• Spaniards enslave the indian population and force them to mine gold

• European diseases such as smallpox quickly start decimating the population

• Introduction of catholicism by the Spaniard

6


Hispaniola (1503 - 1697) and Saint-Domingue

• Spaniard start importing slaves (200,000) from Africa in 1503

• French pirates (Boucaniers & Flibustiers) in north west; the island of Tortuga

• Treaty of Ryswick in 1697 cedes 1/3 of island to France: Saint-Domingue

• French accelerates the slave trade; reaches 500,000+ on west side

• Labour of the slaves results a blossoming high-profit agricultural economy

‣ indigo, cotton, coffee, cocoa, and sugar

‣ more than 30,000 Frenchman immigrates (petit et grand blancs)

• By 1790, Saint-Domingue is France’s most profitable asset and colony

• French Admiral Compte d’Estaing and thousands to Savannah, Georgia

7


Toussaint and the revolution (1751-1804)

• Slaves are mistreated, considered to be “un bien meuble” for the whites

• French revolution in 1789 calls for “Les droits de l’homme et du citoyen”

• French Enlightenment thinkers, e.g., Rousseau, all men declared free

• Class and racial struggles as mixed race (mulattos) try to get their freedom

• Unsuccessful slave rebellions Biassou and Boukman

• Former self-educated slave Toussaint rises

‣ military leader for Spaniard, French and for the slaves

‣ drives Spanish and British invasions out

‣ becomes the highest ranked general in the French army8


Toussaint and the revolution (1751-1804) (cont.)

• French’s Assemblée Nationale sends three Commissions Civile to colony

• Toussaint plays all of the various commissioners, including Sonthonax

• Toussaint, after a short civil war with Rigaud, is self-proclaimed governor

‣ abolishes slavery in the whole island in Santo Domingo

‣ establishes the first colony constitution in 1801, unites the island

• In France the Jacobins loose power as the Revolution eats its own

• Napoleon’s rise to dictatorial power

‣ attempts to restore slavery and sends Leclerc

‣ big expeditions 12,000 men with hundreds of ships 9


A new nation is born: Emperor Jean-Jacques Dessalines (1804-1806)

• Toussaint and his generals resist and negotiates his surrender

• Toussaint is then trapped and deported to Fort de Joux in France

• Dessalines leads blacks and mulattos in the fight for independence

• Bloody battles decimates French troupes as well as yellow-fever outbreak

• Independence declared on January 1st, 1804: first black independent country

• Dessalines declares himself governor for life, president, then Emperor

• France, United States, Britain do not recognize country of free slaves

• Dessalines massacres many whites and is also assassinated soon after

10


A new nation is born: King Henry Christophe

• Progressist, created his own body of law (“Code Henry”), great administrator

• Autocrat and establishes first Haitian Kingdom in 1811

• Amongst his accomplishments

‣ makes Cap Haitian the capital and ruled from there

‣ builds The Citadel La Ferrière to fight any future invasions

‣ builds lavished castle Sans Soucis and Fort Picolet and other forts

• Nemesis of Pétion who he fights - first civil war - dies in 1820

11


A new nation is born: President Alexandre Pétion

• First Haitian president established in south-western region of country

• Believes mostly in democracy as opposed to Christophe

• Second constitution of Haiti in 1806 with bicameral power

• Establishes first school: Lycée Pétion

• Helps Simón Bolívar in Jacmel

‣ shelter, food, and ammunitions

‣ sends infantry to fight Spaniard and liberates modern-day Columbia

‣ only payment for help is to free the slaves in every country he conquered

• Pétionville in north side of Port-au-Prince named after him 12


Struggles to fit as a black country in a slave-owning world

• France ask for retribution for independence and would not trade

• Jean-Pierre Boyer takes over entire island for 22 years

• Various presidents and struggling peace and difficult economy

• Faustin Soulouque re-establishes a kingdom from 1847 - 1858

• Economy never reaches pre-independence levels

• Free black country surrounded by slave-owned giants

• No official trade nor diplomacy with U.S. nor Britain nor Spain

13


American occupation and papa and baby doc

• After a multitude of coups and popular uprisings

• First American occupation ordered by Woodrow Wilson in 1914

• Following is a period of relative peace, progress, and prosperity

• Dictatorships

‣ Papa doc - creates a militia, declares himself president for life

‣ Baby doc - youngest president at 18; corruption is rampant

• New revolution against Duvalier and the Tonton Macoutes results in his departure to France on February 7th, 1986

14


Modern-day Haïti

• Various ephemeral governments

• First democratically elected president in 1990: Jean-Bertrand Aristide

• Coup d’état in 1991 by general Cédras and U.S. mini-occupation

• Aristide restored as president in 1994; finishes his term

• René Préval elected president in 1996

• Aristide’s second election is short lived; force to exile; Préval is re-elected

• Period of high-insecurity and kidnapping then some level of stability

• January 12, 2010...

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January 12, 2010 quake - some statistics

• 215,000 deaths

• > 300,000 injuries; 1M+ homeless; > 250,000 new orphans

• > 600 organizations in place for initial relief effort and now about 300

• International aid

‣ US President Barack Obama pledges $100 million

‣ > 20 countries: Canada, France, Britain, and other (~$1/2 B)

‣ US population generosity results in greater than > $100 million

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References

• Aimé Cesaire “Toussaint Louverture”, Paris, 1981

• J.C. Dorsainvil “Histoire D’Haiti”, edition Henri Deschamps, 1934

• C. L. R. James “The Black Jacobins: Toussaint L’Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution”, Vintage Books, second edition, 1989

• Noam Chomsky “U.S. and Haiti”, MIT

• Madisson Smartt Bell “Toussain Louverture: A biography”, Pantheon, 2007

• Victor Schoelcher, “La vie de Toussaint L’Ouverture”

• Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Haiti

• Haiti Quake People Finder app: http://apps.facebook.com/haiti_survivors

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brief history of haiti

Education

saintdomingue french

french army

new nation

includingsonthonax toussaint

surrender toussaint

whites french revolutionin

christopher columbus

entire island