A revolution is defined as: “the violent and abrupt overthrow of a sociopolitical regime that leads to change in the fundamental political and social institutions of a society.” At first glance, the Haitian Revolution appears to meet that criteria. The revolt lasted for 13 brutal years, from 1791 – 1804, and resulted in 62,000 dead Frenchmen and over 100,000 dead Haitians. In the end, the Haitians reigned victorious and gained their independence. The shear length, number of casualties, and overthrow of the French colonial government certainly satisfy the first. requirement. Meeting the second requirement, fundamental change in the political institution, was also attained. After Haiti attained independence, the Haitians gained control of their …show more content…
own government and blacks secured the same rights and fair punishments as those of the white colonists. The third prerequisite, fundamental change in social institutions, was achieved through abolishing slavery, improving life expectancy, reimbursing for forced labor, and granting freedom of religion.
The independence of Haiti required the violent overthrow of the French sociopolitical regime and produced revolutionary changes in the political and social institutions of the Haitians.
Political institutions drastically changed after independence of French rule. The most obvious variation between French ruled St. Domingue and Haitian ruled Haiti is that Haitians now ruled their own land that they had forcibly labored on for almost one-hundred years. After autonomy and freedom from the French, native-born occupants of the island and native-Africans could finally rule themselves. This is a major institutional change because now the rulers of Haiti could cater to their own needs and they proved that blacks could form a working government. Another significant transformation to the government was that it became an empire, not a colony under the Republic of France. As an independent empire the country now answered to itself and its emperor, rather than a king in a country 4,500 miles away. This allowed for the new empire to develop its own culture instead of trying to adapt
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to European ways of living, like the French St. Domingan colonists. Judicial equality was another political institution change. In the 1805 Constitution of Haiti, it included, “The law is the same to all, whether it punishes, or whether it protects.” Moreover, the 45th amendment reads, “No one can interfere with the right which every individual has of being judged amicably by arbitrators of his own choosing whose decisions shall be acknowledged legal.” This marks a very important institutional change because now Haitians were inherently promised protection by the government and the Haitian government publicly committed itself to an understanding of justice that is impartial and irrespective of arbitrary distinctions, such as those contained in the old slave based society. Prior to the right of the same law applying to all, the laws and punishments were decided by the slave’s master. The Code Noir states, “The masters may also, when they believe that their slaves so deserve, chain them and have them beaten with rods or straps.” Therefore, Haitians obtained fair trials with impartialness, something they had never had a right to before. Ultimately, political and constitutional changes led to change within social institutions. Social institutions fundamentally changed by abolishing slavery, improving life expectancy, reimbursing for forced labor, and granting freedom of religion.
In the 1805 Constitution of Haiti, the second amendment declares that “Slavery is forever abolished.” This change was profoundly impactful because of the 530,000 people of color in Haiti during French colonialism, 500,000 of them were enslaved. Haitian slaves “were legally considered to be property of the public and with little choice, yielded obedience.”The abolition of slavery codifies personal autonomy and got rid of the social class of slaves. Simply put, Haitians now owned themselves. Unlike during French rule, Haitians now were given the ability to think and act for themselves under the new constitution. Another side effect of not being forced into slavery was that life expectancy increased. Under French colonialism, life expectancy for newly arrived slaves “was less than ten years.” After the revolution, life expectancy improved substantially because Haitians were no longer forced to work eighteen hour days and were not under the constant threat of being whipped anymore. Also, laborers on the island began to receive benefits and compensation for their work in the fields under Dessalines. During Dessalines reign, crop laborers received “25% of the value of the crops to divide among themselves, and housing, food, clothing and basic care.” This was a very significant change since during French colonialism, slaves
received no compensation for their work, no housing, no clothes, and certainly no basic care, which explains for the short life expectancy Haitian slaves had. A final major change achieved by the Haitian revolution was freedom of religion. The 51st amendment of the Haitian Constitution of 1805 declares, “The freedom of worship is tolerated.” Now, Haitians could legally practice the very popular voodoo religion. Under the Code Noir, the French code that slaves were supposed to be ruled by, “All slaves that shall be in our islands shall be baptized and instructed in the Roman, Catholic, and Apostolic Faith.” After the 1805 Constitution of Haiti, Haitians were finally permitted to openly worship any faith of their choosing. In summary, abolishing slavery, improving life expectancy, reimbursing for forced labor, and granting freedom of religion changed social institutions in Haiti.
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
The 1805 Constitution of Haiti is a document that first declares Haiti’s independence from any colonizing power. It declares that the people of Haiti are free and will forever be free, which in many ways is similar to the list of grievances in the United States Declaration of Independence. The people of Haiti would not be subjected to living and working for a king or emperor. The Constitution then goes on to list the rights that Haitian Citizens will have under their new found government. In these rights they use the same language as the United States Constitution, which was made popular by the period of enlightment. This suggest that Haiti was capable of creating a civilized society, which counteracted the notion that blacks were incapable of creating and maintaining civilized society.
Haiti began as the French colony Saint-Domingue. The island was filled with plantations and slaves to work on them. Almost a decade and a half after its settlement, this colony paved the way for many changes throughout the French empire and many other slave nations. Through its difficult struggle, we examine whether the slave revolt of Saint-Domingue that began in the late 16th century was justifiable and whether its result of creating the free nation of Haiti was a success.
However, one of the greatest differences in their outcomes was that France emerged as a new, firm government as Haiti staggered with its new independence. 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.
Both France and Haiti had so many similarities between their revolutions. Both France and Haiti had an oppression for both social and political systems, because they wanted equality among people. “ The injustices of the social system in Saint Dominique stood in stark contrast to the ideals of the French Republic espoused in France during the French revolution, when on August 26,1789, the Claritin of the rights of man was adopted”. (Stock). This quote means that the french republic wanted good in their social system but they got the opposite.“Among the whites, political upheaval had started in the french colonies which had started in 1789 and ended in 1799, which came into conflict, which also divided the French at home” (stock). So basically
The French Revolutions ideology of freedom and equality lead to the Haitian revolution in Saint Domingue. Saint Domingue was one of the richest colonies in the entire world during this time. It made a big profit for France, but the rules were also unfair. They favored only to the slave owners and whites. This is why many slaves wanted to revolt. Before the revolution, Saint Domingue was a major producer of coffee and sugar.
This particular revolution was meant to rid the country of its dependency upon slavery; however, it did very little to procure the exact solution that the natives of this country wanted. It’s stated more than once in this story that a true and honest living is not easily come by for any native of Haiti and they earn very little money when a job is available. People are paid an insubstantial wage, live in shantytowns, and often times go to bed with their stomachs distended from a voracious and unforgiving hunger. In The Norton Mix Introduction to Literature, Danticat shows these significant consequences of the Revolution by stating that when it got really bad for the family, they would boil ground sugar cane so that it would get rid of the hunger pangs that often tormented the children of the poor (p. 229).
On January 1, 1804, the country of Haiti formally declared independence from the French colonial powers. This newfound state of freedom was born as a result of the Haitian revolution (1791–1804), a movement that was primarily lead by the former slave and prominent leader, Toussaint L’Overture. Due to the successful nature of this slave revolt, the nation of Haiti became a huge inspiration for surrounding colonies – becoming the second former European colony in the New World that was able to achieve independence. Despite the hard-won efforts of the oppressed, political stability within the country quickly unravelled as the national identity formed during the revolution deteriorated under rising conflict between mulattoes and blacks.
Throughout history, countless uprisings have occurred. Historians classify any forcible overthrow of a government or social order in favor of a new system as a revolution. The success or failure of a revolution is directly related to the revolution’s causes and courses. The French Revolution was more successful than the Nicaraguan Revolution, because the Nicaraguan Revolution left the country in social and financial ruin, foreign powers had much greater interference, and it precipitated a period of political unrest with multiple leadership changes.
Although, after the revolution, both France and Haiti’s economy was negatively impacted, as a result of the violent rebellions that occurred in order to acquire independence. France was required to overthrow their own government, which was an internal force, however Haiti was required to overthrow an external force, which was France. Nevertheless, both applied violence in their movements and were influenced by significant leaders who enabled the success of the revolution, as they desired political equality within society. Plus, each possessed the same government after the revolutions took place. Thus, even though the French Revolution and Haitian Revolution occurred chronologically in this era of changing society, they both possess distinct aspects, as well as certain similarities.
The impacts of the Haitian Revolution on America could still be seen many years after the battles had ended. Unfortunately, Americans in the late eighteenth century had seen how the malicious treatment of slaves by their owners led to the revolt. Due to this, American slave owners were taught how to control and manipulate slavery just to the point of indecency, without crossing the thin line of intolerance, that is, until the American Civil War. Nonetheless, these lessons prolonged the era of slavery in the Free World, largely affecting the nation’s overall history. Moreover, Thomas Jefferson began to sever trade ties with Haiti in 1804, claiming they were not entitled to equal freedom from France as America had won from Britain. He succeeded in this cut, and by 1806, The U.S and Haiti had broken trade connections, which further bruised the Haitian economy after the revolution. In an online PBS article entitled, “Douglas Egerton on the Haitian Revolution, Toussaint L'Ouverture, and Jefferson ,” Douglas A. Egerton, professor in the Le Moyne College of History, describes Jefferson as arguing that “this was an example of
...] and the Haitians shall hence foward be known only by the generic application of Blacks” (Dessalines, Haiti Const.). However, the American and Latin American Revolution were conservative movements. While they did overthrow the government by force and implement a new system, they were less revolutionary because there was less bloodshed. This can be seen as the American Revolution gained independence from Britain and set up a new system set forth by the Enlightenment ideals and English liberties in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Likewise, the Latin American Revolution created less of a change in the political and social structures of Latin America such as not becoming democratic. Each revolution differed greatly in terms of effects, violence, being a conservative or radical movement, and the revolution being categorized as political, social, or both.
Haiti, previously known as Saint-Domingue, was a slave island and one of the wealthiest of France’s colonies. Up until this point in time, slavery was still common and, as mentioned above, continued throughout the world even after such freedom declarations such as, the Declaration of Independence in the newly formed United States, and the Declaration of Rights of Man in the Republic of France. The Haitian Revolution was brought on by the want for liberation of slaves, and was largely inspired by the French Revolution and the Declaration of Rights of Man. “Even though the early leaders of the French Revolution had no intention of exporting the upheaval, it spread to the colonies, especially to Saint-Domingue” (Ott 1973). This revolution proved to be a major event as it was the most successful slave revolution in history. The slavery population in Haiti, vastly outnumbered the white colonists in Haiti, and therefore, when the slave population banded together, led to a full-scaled rebellion. Revolts would continue to occur until finally in 1793, the slaves got their freedom, with slavery officially being abolished in all French territories in 1794. From this point until 1802, small rebellions continued to occur as not much changed in the daily lives of slaves, despite technically having their freedom. After the French Revolution and with Napoleon taking power in 1799; Napoleon reinstated slavery in all French colonies, including Haiti. Napoleon also sent an army to Haiti to enforce these new slavery laws and Haiti returned to a slave economy in 1802 (Doyle 1943). The Haitian Revolutionaries finally get their win after defeating the French soldiers in the Battle of Vertieres in 1803; the final part of the revolution. The revolution officially ended in 1804, with Haiti gaining its independence from France and permanently abolishing slavery
Early in the nineteenth century rebellion against European authority broke out in Latin America. First, slaves on the island of Haiti revolted against their French masters. Led by former slave Toussaint L'Overture the Haitians defeated France making Haiti the...
The island of Saint-Domingue was made up of a mixture of people including whites from France, creoles, free people of color, and slaves. Once sugar became a major cash crop on the island, an estimated half-million African slaves were brought in to work the land. These slaves outnumbered their white masters more than ten to one and made up the majority of the island inhabitants. Even so, the island had the most secure slave regime in the Caribbean because of the cooperation between masters and free men of color. Due to the difficult policing jobs given to the freed men with little reward, the communication between them and the white masters broke down. Now that the white slaveholders were on their own, it was only a matter of time before their brutal treatment of slaves would lead to an uprising. Once enslaved Africans received word of the revolution in France they too began demanding freedom. After years of civil unrest and vicious fighting, Haiti declared its freedom from France in January of 1804. What makes the Haitian Revolution more radical than the two before it is the fact that it was led by slaves. Throughout the previous revolutions, the main goal was for white men, essentially, to be free from oppressive government rule. There were few thoughts regarding the rights of slaves, even though they too were men. The fact that this group of people were able to remove the colonial authority and establish their own country during this period of time was particularly radical and unheard