The Haitian Revolution Flashcards
Who lived on the island of Hispaniola before the Europeans came?
The Tainos.
Explain the difference between Santo Domingo, Saint-Domingue, and Hispaniola.
Hispaniola was the island where these colonies were located, Santo Domigo was the eastern Spanish colony, and Saint-Domingue was the western French colony.
List three crops grown in Saint-Domingue.
Sugar, coffee, tobacco.
In 1791, how many slaves and white people lived in Saint-Domingue?
500,000 slaves, 32,000 whites.
Why were some slaves considered elite?
They had positions of authority in their household and were trusted by their masters.
Who were the affranchis?
Free people of color, often the children of a white man and black woman.
What was the Black Code?
A code that detailed France’s rules and position regarding colonial slavery.
List three ways that slaves resisted their masters prior to the revolution.
Suicide and infanticide, Vodou, cultural practices like dancing.
Who were the maroons?
Black slaves who ran away from their plantations and formed communities in the mountains.
Who was Francois Makandal and what was his plan?
He was a maroon leader who planned to poison all the whites in the northern part of the colony.
What revolution began in 1789 and what effect did it have on Saint-Domingue?
French Revolution. It sowed division between the groups of people in the colony because certain groups interpreted the Declaration of Rights of Man differently.
What did each group want from the Declaration of Rights of Man?
Upper whites=protection for privileges
Lower whites and affranchis=equal privilieges
When did the rebellion begin, where, and what was the original goal?
1791, August, the original goal was improved treatment and living conditions for slaves but morphed into a desire for outright freedom.
Three countries were involved in the Revolution. Name them.
France, Spain, and Britain.
How did rebel leaders define freedom?
Emancipation of all slaves, but not the abolition of the plantation system.
How did the masses define freedom?
The ability to possess and work their own land; no more laboring for others.
What caused the Civil War in Saint-Domingue in 1799?
The two leaders, Rigaud and Louverture, had different officials: Rigaud had mulatto officials who were slave owners before the Revolution and wanted to protect their status, while Louverture’s officials were all black and feared Rigaud’s officials reinstating slavery.
Why did the US support Louverture during the 1799 Civil War?
They wanted the beneficial trade relationship with Saint-Domingue and thought that it may lead to Saint-Domingue’s independence, weakening France.
What effect did the Thirty Years’ War have on Saint-Domingue? What event happened next?
The population and economy crashed. Next, Nine Years’ War.
What effect did the Nine Years’ War have on Saint-Domingue? What event came next?
The French colony of Saint-Domingue was established and became lucrative for its coffee and sugar trade. Next, American Rev.
What came after the American Revolution and what effect did it have? What came next?
French Rev, it spread Enlightenment ideals to Haiti and violence grew. Next, Declaration of Rights of Man.
What effect did the Declaration of Rights of Man have? What came next?
It sowed division between the population groups in Saint-Domingue. Next, Haitian Rev started.
After the Haitian Revolution started, what happened? Next?
War of the First Coalition. Spain and Britain tried to invade Saint-Domingue. Next, France abolished colonial slavery.
After France abolished slavery, what happened? Next?
New French Constitution was established and said that different laws would govern the colonies, and many feared slavery returning. Next, Saint-Domingue constitution proclaimed by Louverture.
What happened after Louverture proclaimed the Saint-Domingue constitution?
Napolean signed the Treaty of Amiens with Britain. With a break in conflict between Britain and France, Napolean focused on retaking Saint-Domingue.
What happened after the Treaty of Amiens was signed? After that?
Napolean reinstated slavery in three French colonies; despite his reassurance that slavery would not come back to Saint-Domingue, the colonists revolted. Next, Louisiana Purchase.
Why was the Louisiana Purchase significant? What happened after that?
It signified Napolean retreated from the colonies and Americas. Next, Jean-Jaque Dessalines declared Haiti’s independence.
What world history event may have had the most impact on Haiti and why?
French Rev because it spread Enlightenment ideals regarding freedom and equality to Saint-Domingue, and it also created mass chaos and instability within France and colonies, sparking the colonists’ need and desire for change. This change came in the form of Haiti’s independence.
List 5 key elements of the 1801 Saint-Domingue Constitution.
Abolished slavery, equal rights for all citizens, proclaimed Louverture governor general for life, kept Vodou illegal, still named colonists as French citizens to keep trade and military benefits.
Why did Louverture require landholdings to be larger than 3.3 acres?
He thought large landholdings would boost the economy.
Why did some resist Louverture’s new laws?
He did not abolish the plantation system, so many saw it as a way to reinstate slavery.
Why did France invade Saint-Domingue after the Constitution was established?
Napolean saw the Consitution as just short of being a Declaration of Independence and therefore saw it as a threat.
Why were the US and Britain opposed to Saint-Domingue’s independence?
They had both made peace with France and therefore agreed to help France subdue the colony and saw the colony’s independence as a threat to their own slavery systems.
List three events that happened just after Haiti became independent.
Dessalines commanded that any French citizens in Haiti be killed, the Haitian Constitution was established and declared equality, and France alongside Britain, Spain, and the US shunned Haiti.
Why did many countries shun Haiti?
They hated the idea of a nation run by former slaves and people of color and saw Haiti as a threat to their own slavery systems.
What did France force Haiti to do to pay for “damages?”
They demanded special trading privileges and demanded a sum of money equivalent to $22 billion USD.
Why did Haiti agree to France’s demands for the “damages?”
They thought it would end aggression with France and believed that trade with countries such as France was essential to economic recovery.
When did Haiti succeed in paying off its debt to France?
1947.
List three ways the Haitian Rev influenced world history.
It sparked Napolean’s choice to sell the Lousiana Territory, which gave the US more status and power in the world; it caused an increase in sugar production and slavery in other Caribbean colonies, and it contributed to an end to slavery in other places.
