Jean-Jacques Dessalines
Introduction and Synopsis
One of the most prominent and notable figures of Haiti was the revolutionary ex-slave turned Emperor known as Jean-Jacques Dessalines who renamed the colony Haiti, proclaimed the country’s independence in 1804, and declared himself Emperor Jacques I of Haiti, although initially regarded as governor-general at the time. He was despised for his brutality, yet honored as one of Haiti's founding fathers, but was was ultimately killed in a revolt on October 17, 1806, in Pont Rouge, near Port-au-Prince. Dessalines was a leader of the Haitian Revolution and the first ruler of an independent Haiti under the 1801 constitution.
Dessalines served as an officer in the French army when the colony was trying to withstand Spanish and British incursions. Later he rose to become a commander in the revolt against France. As Toussaint Louverture's principal lieutenant, he led many successful engagements, including the Battle of Crete-a-Pierrot. After the betrayal and capture of Toussaint Louverture in 1802, Dessalines became the leader of the revolution. He defeated a French army at the Battle of Vertieres in 1803. Declaring Haiti an independent nation in 1804, Dessalines was chosen by a council of generals to assume the office of governor-general. He ordered the 1804
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Haiti massacre of the white Haitian minority, resulting in the deaths of between three thousand and five thousand people, between February and April 1804. In September 1804, he proclaimed himself emperor and ruled in that capacity until being assassinated in 1806. Early Life Jean-Jacques Dessalines' life and history is a little bit of a mystery almost like a fable. Haitian tradition says he was born in central West Africa and transported as a slave to Sant-Domingue, in the French West Indies. However, most historians believe he was born Jean-Jacques Duclos, the name of his first owner, in Saint-Domingue. The identity of his parents, as well as his region of origin in Africa, are not known, but most slaves trafficked to Haiti came from west and central West Africa, just like many African-American descendants. Duclos worked in the sugar cane fields as a laborer and eventually rose to the rank of commandeur or foreman. Duclos was then bought by a free black man named Dessalines, from whom he received the surname which he kept in freedom. From then on he was called Jean-Jacques Dessalines. Jean-Jacques Dessalines worked for him for about three years until the slave uprising of 1791, which spread across the Plaine du Nord, allowing Dessalines to escape the plantation and join rising rebel leader Toussaint L'Ouverture. Dessalines did not know how to read or write but was a rather adeptable learner, positioning himself as L'Ouverture's lieutenant and earning the nickname the "Tiger" for his ferocity in battle. Initially, they only wanted to free all slaves on the island, but over time their next goal was independence. Revolution Before Dessalines followed Louverture, he was apart of the slave rebellion of the northern plains led by Jean Francois Papillon and Georges Biassou. This rebellion was the first action of what would become the Haitian Revolution. Dessalines became a lieutenant in Papillon's army and followed him to Santo Domingo, where he enlisted to serve Spain's military forces against the French colony of Saint-Domingue. It was then that Dessalines met the military commander Toussaint Bréda (later known as Toussaint Louverture), who was also born into slavery, who was fighting with Spanish forces on Hispaniola. These men wanted above all to defeat slavery. In 1794, after the French declared an end to slavery, Toussaint Louverture switched allegiances to the French. He fought for the French Republic against both the Spanish and British. Dessalines followed, becoming a chief lieutenant to Toussaint Louverture and rising to the rank of brigadier general by 1799. Dessalines commanded many successful battles, including the captures of Jacmel, Petit-Goave, Miragoane and Anse-a-Veau. In 1801, Dessalines quickly ended an insurrection in the north led by Louverture's own nephew, General Moyse. Dessalines gained a reputation for his "take no prisoners" policy, and for burning homes and entire villages to the ground. The rebellious slaves were able to restore most of Saint-Domingue to France, with Louverture in control and finally appointed by the French as governor general of the colony. Louverture wanted Saint-Domingue to have more autonomy. He directed the creation of a new constitution to establish that, as well as rules for how the colony would operate under freedom. He also named himself governor-for-life, while still swearing his loyalty to France. With Europe temporarily distracted due to the rise of Napoleon, the slave rebellion turned into a civil war and Louverture and Dessalines fought for control of the island, crushing rivals and slave owners alike. Many whites and mulattos in Santa Dominque had lobbied France to re-establish slavery and Napoleon sent a force to restore French rule on the island. Louverture and Dessalines repelled the invading forces in the battle of Crere-a -Pierrot. With 1,300 men he defended a small fort against 18,000 attackers. To motivate his troops at the start of the battle, he waved a lit torch near an open powder keg and declared that he would blow the fort up should the French break through. The defenders inflicted heavy casualties on the attacking army, but after a 20-day siege they were forced to abandon the fort due to a shortage of food and munitions. Nonetheless, the rebels were able to force their way through the enemy lines and into the Cahos Mountains, with their army still largely intact. After the Battle of Crête-à-Pierrot, Dessalines defected from his long-time ally Louverture and briefly sided with Leclerc, Pétion, and Rigaud. Dessalines was at least partially responsible for Louverture's arrest, as asserted by several authors, including Louverture's own son Isaac. On 22 May 1802, after Dessalines "learned that Louverture had failed to instruct a local rebel leader to lay down his arms per the recent ceasefire agreement, he immediately wrote Leclerc to denounce Louverture’s conduct as "extraordinary."". For this action, Dessalines and his spouse received gifts from Jean Baptiste Brunet. Now the leader of the Revolution after Toussaint's capture on 7 June 1802, commanded the rebel forces against a French army weakened by a yellow fever epidemic. His forces achieved a series of victories against the French, culminating in the last major battle of the revolution, the Battle of Vertieres. On 18 November 1803, black and mulatto forces under Dessalines and Pétion attacked the fort of Vertières, held by Rochambeau, near Cap-Francais in the north. Rochambeau and his troops surrendered the next day. On 4 December 1803, the French colonial army of Napoleon Bonaparte surrendered its last remaining territory to Dessalines' forces. The fusion of blacks and mulattos were successful in forcing the French to surrender and leave the island. In 1804, Dessalines proclaimed independence and declared himself emperor. Haiti then became the first black independent republic in the world. Emperor Dessalines was embittered towards both whites and gens de couleur (the mixed-race inhabitants of Saint-Domingue). After the defeat of French royalists during the Haitian Revolution, he ordered the killing of all royalists to ensure that Saint-Domingue would be a nation. Nonetheless, after declaring himself Governor-for-Life in 1804, Jean-Jacques Dessalines took his old master Dessalines into his house and gave him a job. He continued many of Toussaint’s policies, including the use of forced labour on plantations to prevent reversion to a purely subsistence economy. In a series of actions meant to prevent any renewal of white dominance over the blacks, who formed more than eighty percent of the population, he confiscated land owned by white people, made it illegal for them to own property, and, perhaps fearing them as potential subversives in the event of another French invasion, launched a campaign of extermination against the country’s white inhabitants in which thousands were killed. Resistance to Dessalines and his autocratic rule grew among the mulatto elites. The sugar industry and plantations needed to keep running and producing without slavery.
Born into slavery and having worked under white masters for thirty years, as well as having seen many atrocities by all peoples, Dessalines did not trust the white French people. He enforced a harsh regimen of plantation labor, described by the historians as agrarian militarism. As had Toussaint Louverture, Dessalines demanded that all blacks work either as soldiers to protect the nation or as laborers on the plantations to generate crops and income to keep the nation going. His forces were strict in enforcing this, to the extent that some blacks felt as if they were again
enslaved. The emperor believed in the tight regulation of foreign trade, which was essential for Haiti's sugar and coffee based export economy. Like Toussaint Louverture, Dessalines encouraged merchants from Britain and the United States over those from France. For his administration, Dessalines needed literate and educated officials and managers. He placed in these positions well-educated Haitians, who were disproportionately from the light-skinned elite, as gens de couleur were most likely to have been educated. People of all classes were upset with his labor and agricultural policies including the peasants, the fair-skinned elite and the military. Death and Legacy Disaffected members of Dessalines' administration, including Alexandre Peiton and Henri Christophe, began a conspiracy to overthrow the Emperor. Dessalines was assassinated north of the capital city, Port-au-Prince, at Pont Larnage (now known as Pont-Rouge), on October 17, 1806 on his way to fight the rebels. His exact death circumstances are uncertain. Some historians claim that he was actually killed at Pétion's house after a meeting to negotiate the power and the future of the young nation. Some reports say that he was arrested and was dealt a deadly blow to the head. Another report says he was ambushed and killed at first fire. Yet another account recalls the brutal attack of his men onto him. It says he was shot at twice and hit once. Then his head was split open by a saber's blow, to finally be stabbed three times by a dagger. "The tyrant is killed" was exclaimed from the crowd. The mob desecrated and disfigured his remains, which were abandoned on Government Square. A monument at the northern entrance of the Haitian capital marks the place where the Emperor was killed. After much resistance from the people to provide a proper burial, Défilée (Dedee Bazil), a black woman from a humble background, took the mutilated body of the Emperor to bury him. Although hated by generations of Haitians for his autocratic ways, by the beginning of the 20th century, Dessalines began reemerged as an icon of Haitian nationalism. The national anthem of Haiti, La Dessalinienne, is named in his honor, as is the city of Dessalines. Works Cited Girard, Philippe. "The Slaves Who Defeated Napoleon: Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian War of Independence 1801–1804". Tuscaloosa Alabama: The University of Alabama Press. Bob, Corbet, "A Brief History of Dessalines from 1825 Missionary Journal". American Missionary Register. October, 1825 vol. VI, no. 10 Pages 292-297s. Johnson, Paul Christopher. Journal of the American Academy of Religion. Jun 2006, Vol. 74 Issue 2, p420. Sourieau, Marie-Agnès. Small Axe: A Caribbean Journal of Criticism. Sep2005, Vol. 9 Issue 2, p24. Leonard, Thomas. "Haitian Constitution of 1805." Encyclopedia of Latin America: Search for National Identity, vol. 3. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2010. Modern World History Online. Facts On File, Inc.
He was complex, he was known as the father of his country, he was Toussaint Louverture. Who was Toussaint Louverture? Toussaint was a young slave born around the 1740s. He was born in Saint Domingue (present day Haiti). He started out as a herder and worked his way up to overseeing fellow slaves. His Godfather taught him how to read and write and soon enough he was granted freedom by his owner and rented a coffee plantation with his own slaves. How we should remember Toussaint Louverture is kind of a controversial subject. I believe that Toussaint should be remembered as a great Haitian leader because he was tough, he had a good sense of moral leadership, he was compassionate and had political skill.
He helped form one of the most successful slave revolts in history and created a black-led government that saw a revival in a colony that had been almost completely burned to nothing. He knew that liberty was important to the colony, but also understood the fundamental importance of having a successful economy. He persevered even when those around him heavily resented him. As a military leader, Toussaint was idolized by his troops. He led by example and embarked on and shared their dangers. He was gifted with genius when it came to military tactics, despite what stereotypes other European generals had, and his guerilla style warfare was a huge success. In his time, Toussaint managed to win support from many of the former slaves, drove Spanish and British troops out of the colony, and defeated internal conflicts. During his time he also managed to make peace with revolutionary France following the abolition of slavery, until the return of Napoleon. Toussaint had completely conquered St-Domingue and abolished slavery on the
The Haitian Declaration of Independence was composed by the Commander in Chief, after Haiti officially declared its independence. The purpose of this document was to end slavery as well as gain independence. After examining the letter thoroughly, you see that the he was writing to the people of Haiti. On the first page of the letter, he explained that the Haitians, had gathered for “with one last act of national authority,” pledged “to live independent or die,” (Dessalines,1) and would destroy any French invading force. The Haitian
Toussaint Louverture was a free man of color in the colony of St. Domingue, he was one of the few free men of color in the colony most were slaves. Louverture was a former educated slave who wanted to end slavery in his home island. (Katz) Toussaint was born in about 1743 into a slave family, “Toussaint’s owner, actively encouraged him to learn to read and write. He developed a passion for books and his readings were to become a great influence in his political life. Toussaint was freed from slavery at around the age of 33 and colonial records show that he became a land and slave owner himself”(History.state.gov). Toussaint then later in 1789 led the slaves out of slavery defeating the French.
In September 1791, France achieved the movement of freeing and outlawing slavery. In turn, Haitian slaves were inspired to do the same by revolting against French plantation owners. This transformative movement of 100,000 slaves was led by Toussaint L’Ouverture; unfortunately, he died before experiencing Haiti’s separation from France in 1804. However, along the way of success of both revolutions, a toll occurred on the numerous lives lost. The Reign of Terror in France was created as a way to protect the republic from its internal enemies, but instead 16,000 people were guillotined. Many documents were shown to be describing the execution of the Reign of Terror to be gruesome and wrongful such that J.G. Milligen stated, “The process of execution was also a sad and heartrending spectacle”, in The Revolutionary Tribunal. Milligen continued to describe the vivid scene of the execution, but this was only one event and many others have died in the fall of the Bastille and the attack on the royal palace. Haiti has also lost many lives as an outcome of the revolutions especially in the slave revolts and battles with French soldiers sent by Napoleon. In addition, the Haitian Revolution leader L’Ouverture died in captivity in France. Both of these revolutions were known to have successfully achieved its goals, but it was chaotic and
He was a military leader.“He emancipated slaves and negotiated for the French colony of Hispaniola”. (E.Fass)-(Britannica.com) .He led the slave army and later on he had negotiated with napoleon which made napoleon agree to the terms of peace . Both revolutions were inspired by the American Revolution , because both revolutions wanted enlightenment ideas that involved natural rights, such equality and freedom. Both had a terrible class system. Due to having a terrible class system large gaps were created between the rich and the poor . France had three estates which made people selfish to other people at the time it was called the Old Regime. Haiti had three classes also, but they were divided but they were split up by skin color this was called colonization.The majority of populations had belonged to the lower classes because of profit . The French had to have something to motivate them into why they are going through war, so they had a motto and they used three powerful words Liberty, Equality ,and Fraternity. Both French and Haiti had riots overtime. In France, a mob attacked the Paris building of Bastille. Which later be named as the fall of Bastille. Why was it
Schmidt, Hans. The United States Occupation of Haiti, 1915-1934. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers UP, 1995. Print.
It is clear that Toussaint Louverture, in his military strategy, as well as his skill
The first step in Napoleon’s failed effort was to regain the French colony of Sainte-Domingue, which was being ruled by Toussaint L’Ouveture, a leader of the rebel military. Bonaparte’s motivation to recover the island of Sainte-Domingue stemmed from two key factors. His principal reason for wanting to salvage the island was to restore the sugar industry and slave labor in the region. If Napoleon was successful, with regards to this objective, he could successfully launch the Louisiana Territory as his North American empire. The rebellion at Saint-Domingue is essential to the Louisiana Purchase because each phase of Napoleon’s plan was met with resistance from the natives and the generals. Furthermore, a correlation exists as a result of Bonaparte’s failure to accomplish his goal of restoring Saint-Domingue to its days under French rule where slavery was a cornerstone; the defeat of the French during this revolt was the turning point at which Napoleon realized he needed money more than an empire in America. These objectives can be corroborated with an excerpt from “Louisiana: European Explorations and the Louisiana Purchase: A Special Presentation from the Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress” which
Plantation owners in the New World needed slaves for agricultural labor of their plantations. The slaves became disciplined and were forced to work in bad conditions for long hours at young ages in harsh temperatures.
Toussaint had become, as West Indian historian C L R James describes him, a ‘Black Jacobin’. He was now waging all-out war for the abolition of slavery. The Haitian Revolution has often been described as the largest and most successful slave rebellion in the Western Hemisphere. At that moment the Haitian Revolution had outlasted the French Revolution which had been its inspiration. Napoleon Bonaparte, now the ruler of France, dispatched General Charles Leclerc, His brother-in-law, and 43,000 French troops to capture L 'OUverture and restore both French rule and slavery. L 'OUverture was taken and sent to France, where he died in prison in
Several of the problems that Haiti faces today have their genesis in the country’s colonial history. The country was like a toy being fought over by spoiled children. The first of these children arrived in the early sixteenth century in the form of Spanish settlers in search of gold. They enslaved the native Taino population and, poisoned by avarice, nearly eradicated the indigenous work force. Thousands of African slaves were brought in to take their place. Eventually, the Spanish left the island to grab their share of newly discovered treasure in other lands. Tiring of their toy, the Spanish
Haiti was once an economic power when France held claim to the Eastern Part of Hispaniola, then named St. Domingue. It was a French colony flourishing with coffee and sugar. Eventually the ideals of the French Revolution - Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity - made its way to the colonies resulting in a revolution. Haiti was the first slave-led revolution and declared its independence as a republic on January 1, 1804. After their declaration of independence, things started to make a turn for the worst. In 1934 the U.S. forces occupied Haiti to establish stability. The U.S. appointed heads of state but the real power was present in the U.S. occupiers, whereas the heads of state are just figureheads. Haiti’s economy dwindled further down when France demanded reparations of 150 million francs, which wasn’t paid off until 1947. In 65 years, Haiti had 22 heads of state.” In 1957 Francois Duvalier is elected president. He later “creates a totalitarian dictatorship and in 1964 declares himself president-for-life.” This is where Haiti’s political instability really begins.
The Duvalier regime is said to be one of the worst administrations in Haiti killing more than 30,000 people. The regimes of Francois Duvalier and his son Jean-Claude Duvalier who ruled Haiti lasted from September 22nd 1957 to February 6th 1986. Francois was trained as a physician and known to his people as "Papa Doc". Duvalier ruled his country as no other Haitian chief executive had, using violence and phony elections to hold down any opposition. Francois made himself president for life and later on put the government in the hands of his son " Baby Doc ". ( Fatton Jr. 36 )
“Cogito ego sum” - this is a famous quote from Rene Descartes. This quote means," I think, therefore, I am." His beliefs are considered to be epistemological and he is also considered as the father of modern philosophy. In his letter of meditation, he writes about what he believes to be true and what is not true. He writes about starting a new foundation. This meant that he was going to figure out what is true and what is false.