Haitian Revolution Timeline

Haitian Revolution Timeline

Source: Brown University

1492-1697 Spanish Rule & French Claims

Columbus landed on the island Hispaniola in the fall of 1492. He encountered the Taino natives and built a small fort named La Navidad. The Tainos and conquistadors engaged in combat, and ultimately due to superior weapons and disease, the Spanish proved victorious over the natives. Subsequently, the remaining natives were forced into labor in the encomienda system throughout the Spanish empire. Slaves revolted for the first time against the Spanish in 1522 in Hispaniola, 268 years before the Haitian revolution. This rebellion was quickly and harshly suppressed.

In the early 1600s, the first French settlers began to occupy western Hispaniola, composed of former pirates and buccaneers. British and French settlers increasingly occupied the western part of the Island through the 1620s, threatening Spain’s claim on the island. The three nations battled each other for control and influence in Hispaniola through the end of the Haitian Revolution, but France established a claim to the land known as Saint-Domingue in 1640. Then, settlers began cash crop farming, specifically growing tobacco, indigo, and later sugar, which required a large slave population to supply labor. The Treaty of Ryswick confirmed France’s presence in Saint-Domingue, as the Spanish recognized their claims to the western third of Hispaniola.

1750-1784 French Rule & Tensions in the Colony

It is important first to note the distinct groups within colonial society in Saint-Domingue:

• Whites – There were approximately 20,000 whites, mainly French that were divided into two main groups. Planters were wealthy plantation owners and had slaves. Their position was dependent on the slave economy and were very disenchanted with France by 1770 for reasons very similar to those of the American colonists against the British with regard to trade and representation. Petit Blancs (little whites), were the second group of whites. They were artisans, shop keepers, merchants, teachers, and various middle- and underclass whites. Sometimes they had a few slaves, but were not as wealthy as the planters. Petit Blancs tended to be more loyal to France, but they were very committed to slavery and especially anti-black, as free persons of color were serious economic and social competitors.
• Free Persons of Color –There were about 30,000 free persons of color in 1789. The name given to freed blacs was affrancis. About half of them were mulattoes, children of white Frenchmen and slave women. Mulattoes were often freed by their father-masters and feared by slaves since masters often displayed unpredictable behavior toward them, as they recognized them as their children but at other times wished to deny their existence. Therefore, slaves wanted nothing to do with mulattoes. The other half of free persons of color were black slaves who had purchased their own freedom or had been given freedom by their masters. Free persons of color were often wealthy, usually moreso than Petit Blancs, and sometimes more wealthy than planters! They could own plantations and their own slaves, often treating them poorly to draw distinct lines between themselves and the slaves. There were laws that limited the behavior of this group; they did not have rights as citizens of France. They tended to side with the planters as being pro-independence.
• Black Slaves – There were some 500,000 slaves on the eve of the French Revolution, outnumbering free people by about 10-1. The slave system was especially cruel in Saint-Domingue. There were 3 main groups:
• Domestic Slaves – 100,000 cooks, personal servants, and artisans; treated better than field hands & identified more fully with white and mulatto masters
• Field Hands – 400,000 agricultural workers; worked all day with little food, no medical care, and poor treatment. They were illiterate. French masters found it easier to replace slaves by purchasing new ones than to worry about preserving the existing slaves, despite French philosophical positions which admitted the human status of slaves.
• Maroons – large group of runaway slaves, living in small villages. They practiced subsistence farming and kept alive African ways. Maroons were bitterly anti-slavery, but alone were not willing to fight for freedom. It is believed there were tens of thousands of them prior to the Revolution of 1791.

In the 1750s, Free blacks and mulattos began to amass wealth and power. Many acquired plantations, specially coffee plantations.

1757: The Mackandal Conspiracy: François Makandal (alternately spelled "Mackandal" or "Macandal"), a maroon leader, conspires to poison all the whites in the North in a plot intended to spread to “all corners of the colony.” Across the North, Makandal’s vast network of collaborators – mostly trusted domestics – begin poisoning their masters' households, including other slaves who can’t be trusted.The whites search frantically for the cause of the illnesses and deaths. After an interrogated female slave betrays the rebel leader, the planters launch a massive manhunt. Mackandal was executed in March 1758. Colonists burned him at the stake and forced their slaves to watch. Many slaves insisted on Mackandal’s immortality and he became an inspirational figure for slaves during the revolution.

From 1763-68, whites tried to control the affranchis as their population grew along with their wealth and power. Affranchis, primarily composed of free mulattoes, threatened the power structure of the colony. Legislation was designed to forbid affranchise from holding public offices, practicing privileged trades like law or medicine, assembling in public, sitting or dressing like whites, gambling, travelling, or entering France! Offenses were punishable with fines, imprisonment, loss of freedom, and amputation. However, affranchise were still obliged to compulsory military duty between the ages of 15 and 45 and allowed to lend money, which colonists were increasingly reliant on.

After the end of the Seven Years’ War in 1763, the colonists increasingly resented France’s hold on their production, which prevented them from profitable trade with other countries. They sought greater administrative control of local affairs and the planters’ autonomy movement began to gain momentum.

1771: Louis XV issues laws: Instructions to Administrators outlined new restrictions against blacks & mulattoes. They elaborated on the Code Noir of 1685, and stripped mulattoes of many freedoms and privileges in the colony.

1776: The United States Declaration of Independence inspires thinking of slaves in Saint-Domingue

1784: France re-imposes the Code Noir, but with some amendments that address slaves’ work hours, food rations, and quality of life. Punishments were restricted and there were minimal controls over whites. But, the Code obliged owners to provide slaves with small plots of land for individual use. Land rights would become a central focus of slaves’ demands during the revolutions. Over the next year, new royal ordinances permitted slaves to denounce abuses of masters, overseers, and plantation managers, although few slaves take advantage of the new rules.

1788-1790 French Revolution Begins

While the Third Estate battled for their voice, Mulattoes and free blacks pursued representation and equal rights as free persons and property owners, but were blocked by white colonists. In the National Assembly, absentee planters prevent the reemergence of the ‘mulatto question’ to avoid a debate that could grant them rights. Meanwhile, in the colony free blacks were richer, more numerous, and more militant than in the other French colonies.Planters feared their power and executed mulattoes whenever possible.

Petitions were submitted throughout the fall of 1788 to request political rights for free persons of color to the Saint-Domingue Provincial Assembly. Saint-Domingue is increasingly unstable as the colony experiences a devastating drought and marronage increases as slaves abandon their plantations at higher rates. In reaction, whites become even more violent towards mulattoes, free blacks, and sympathizers.

17 June 1789: The National Assembly votes to seat six delegates from Saint-Domingue.

26 August 1789 – The Declaration of Rights of Man & Citizen is adopted by the National Assembly. Articles include that men are born & remain free and equal in rights… aim of al political association is the preservation of the rights of man (liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression)… freedom of speech… and no one should be deprived of property except when in public necessity.

October 1789 – Colonial Assembly forms in Saint-Domingue to combat actions from the French National Assembly on behalf of free blacks & mulattoes.

22 October 1789 – French National Assembly accept petition of rights for ‘free citizens of color’ from Saint-Domingue.

In March 1790, a new decree gives full legislative powers to the Colonial Assembly, giving the colony almost complete autonomy but sidestepping the mulatto issue, leaving it to the planters to interpret. By May, the Assembly in Saint Marc begins issuing racial decrees and reforms, pushing the colony further toward autonomy from France and creating conflict between the colony’s royalists and patriots. Saint Marc planters also vow never to grant rights to mulattos an exclude them from the primary assemblies. Mulattos continue to be frustrated in their attempts to secure rights. The French National Assembly dissolves the Colonial Assembly at Saint Marc in October, and the governor sends troops to dissolve it by force. The colony is now divided between royalists and patriots, with both sides courting the support of mulattoes.

1790-1791 Slave Resistance Gains Momentum

21-28 October 1790: The Ogé Rebellion: Jacques Vincent Ogé, an affranchis representing the colony in France, leads a revolt against the white colonial authorities in Saint-Domingue. Despite colonists’ attempts to prevent him from leaving France, Ogé manages to escape to England, where he is secretly helped by abolitionists. From there he sails to the United States, where he buys weaponry before arriving in Saint-Domingue on October 21. Eluding police, Ogé manages to unite with friends and family and organize a “common front of gens de couleur against the forces of white supremacy.” He amasses 300 men, consisting primarily of mulattoes and some free blacks. The group, fully armed, marches to Grande-Rivière, just south of Le Cap, and joins with others with the intention of taking the city and disarming the white population. The colonists manage to disband Ogé’s army by outnumbering the rebels. Ogé escapes and goes into hiding in the eastern part of the island in Spanish Santo Domingo. Ogé is extradited from Spanish territory and executed at Le Cap. He is forced, cords hanging from his necks, to repent for his crimes on bended knee before being tied to a wheel and killed on a scaffold. His head is cut off and displayed on a stake. Two days later 21 of his supporters and troops are sentenced to death. The next month 13 more are sentenced to the galleys for life.

April 1791 – General insurrection breaks out amongst the 10-15,000 slaves in the Cul-de-Sac Plain. Slaves mobilize around Mirebalais, Archaye, Petit-Riviere, Verettes, and Saint Marc until nearly half the province is in armed rebellion. Blacks throughout the colony become increasingly restless.

Meanwhile, the debate on mulatto and free black rights resumes in France. The national assembly responds by declaring a limited number of free-born persons of color eligible to be seated in future assemblies, with rights of voting citizens. Colonists are furious. Colonists would later revolt against this in July of 1791, and elections exclude free blacks and mulattoes from voting.

In May, slaves in the Cul-de-Sac region are disarmed and returned to their plantations. Rebels surrendered in exchange for their leaders’ freedom in the West. In the South, slaves refused to back down and continue to agitate for the freedom. Slaves are not fighting for general emancipation. Instead, they are demanding freedom for their leaders, additional free days during the week, and abolition of the whip as punishment, yet colonists refuse to negotiate at all.

Over the summer, black and mulatto leaders increase their organizational efforts. At the same time, the slaves begin to form their independent movement for emancipation, emboldened by their participation in insurrection movements.Slaves in the Cul-de-Sac Plain abandon their plantations and hold frequent gatherings in the woods to plot the revolution. When planters attempt to break up the meetings, slaves resist with courage and determination. Planters increase their surveillance, patrolling at night and searching cabins for arms. Despite their efforts, slaves still manage to communicate and plan with slaves from different districts.

In July of 1791, the entire structure of Saint-Domingue is changing rapidly. In addition to internal divisions between royalists and reformists, the planters’ strained relations with colony officials erupt into open fighting. Saint-Domingue is in social and administrative chaos and France dismantles the colony’s power structure.

Amidst the upheaval, nearly every planter is too preoccupied with the colony’s power struggles to pay attention to the slaves’ growing unrest. Few of the colonists understand how the changes taking place affect their slaves.

The planters’ lack of understanding was due primarily to hubris: “Although a few might have foreseen the dangers ahead, most generally assumed that slavery was as inviolable as it was enduring. It had lasted over two hundred years. Slave rebellions had occurred in the past, and marronage had been a constant plague. But the revolts were always isolated affairs, and maroon bands were invariably defeated along with their leaders. For the planters, there was no reason to believe that slave activity was any different from what it had been in the past. They would soon learn, but only by the raging flames that within hours reduced their magnificent plantations to ashes, how wrong they were.”

On July 29, violence breaks out in Les Cayes after failed negotiations between colonists and rebel slaves. 2,000 slaves attack a plantation being used as a military camp by the planters. The slaves then divide themselves up into smaller groups to simultaneously attack plantations throughout the Torbeck region. During their attacks, the rebels kill any slave who refuses to join their forces. Their army, growing with each new attack, torches 14 of the colony’s finest plantations.

In response, the colonists charge Governor Blanchelande with disarming the slaves and suppressing the insurrection. Blanchelande amasses hundreds of troops and plans his attack. However, he is overly naïve and plans his offensive publicly, ensuring that the slaves receive detailed information on his planned attacks, allowing them to prepare and strategize against him.

4 August 1791: Blanchelande’s troops are attacked by slaves. The rebels descend on Port-Saltu from all four sides in a coordinated offensive. By the time they are through, not a single plantation is left in the area. The slaves then set successive ambushes, pushing back each column of the colonist army and advancing along the mountainous cliffs. The slaves succeed in destroying the coordination of the whites’ attack and causing confusion and disorder. More than 200 of Blanchelande’s troops are killed.

8 August 1791: Blanchelande returns to Les Cayes with his dilapidated army. In his retreat, he leaves behind 2 cannons and large supplies of munitions and arms. The white residents in Les Cayes are furious and accuse him of aiding the slave insurrection. Blanchelande replies that the planters would have been better off negotiating with the slaves and granting their initial demands.

10 August 1791: Blanchelande goes to Le Cap, fleeing angry colonists in Les Cayes. He is later deported to France. Despite their defeat, Les Cayes planters still refuse to negotiate with slave leaders.

August-Sept. 1791: Haitian Revolution Begins

21-28 Oct 1790

The Ogé Rebellion

14 August 1791

The Haitian Revolution begins with the Bois Caïman ceremony. Ready to carry out their plans, the slaves meet in Morne-Rouge to make final preparations and to give instructions. The slaves decide that “Upon a given signal, the plantations would be systematically set aflame, and a generalized slave insurrection set afoot.” Rumors circulate that white masters and colonial authorities are on their way to France to fight the Crown’s recent decrees granting mulattoes and free blacks rights. Though false, these rumors “served as a rallying point around which to galvanize the aspirations of the slaves, to solidify and channel these into open rebellion.”
The Bois Caïman ceremony and subsequent insurrections are the result of months of planning and strategizing. There are two hundred slave leaders involved from around the North. All hold privileged positions on their plantations, most of them commandeurs with influence and authority over other slaves.Through strategic maneuvering these leaders successfully unite a vast network of Africans, mulattoes, maroons, commandeurs, house slaves, field slaves, and free blacks.
The Bois Caïman ceremony takes place in a thickly wooded area where the slaves solemnize their pact in a voodoo ritual. The ceremony is officiated by Boukman,a maroon leader and voodoo priest from Jamaica, and a voodoo high priestess. Various accounts from that night describe a tempestuous storm, animal sacrifices, and voodoo deities. However, over the centuries the ceremony has become legendary, and it is important to note it can be difficult to distill fact from myth. Some historians, for example, believe the ceremony took place on the 22nd of August, not the 14th.