Rationale The topic: Is it true to say that the Haitian Revolution (1791 -1804) had mostly positive effects

on Haiti and the wider Caribbean was chosen because of the researchers interest in the country of Haiti. Also the countrys demographic location, current affairs and relationship with the wider Caribbean has aroused the curiosity of the researcher hence the choice in topic. http://thelouvertureproject.org/index.php?title=Slavery_in_SaintDomingue#Abolishment_of_slavery_in_Haiti

On December 6, 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered an island which he named La Isla Espanola now known as Hispaniola. Hispaniola consists of Dominican Republic and Haiti, which had the first New World settlement at La Navidad, on its North Coast. Hispaniola was ruled by the Spaniards until 1697, when the Treaty of Ryswick ended their rule. The treaty officially divided the island, giving the western third to the French who renamed it St. Domingue. The rest of the island remained under the Spanish rule and was renamed Santo Domingo. St. Domingue went on to become the most prosperous French Colony in the New World and the overall richest colony. This was between 1697 -1791. That all changed because of the Haitian Revolution which took place in 1791 -1804. This research will show that the Haitian Revolution did not positively affect Haiti economically or socially although it ended slavery in the colony. The revolution had mostly positive effects on the wider Caribbean and this will also be proven in this research. In the earlier years before the Haitian Revolution slavery was at is best, well for the planters. They were in control of the slaves and they did this out of fear; fear of rebellion seeing that the blacks outnumbered them by far, fear that sugar production would not be guaranteed if they were not in control and also they considered the blacks to be the inferior race so in their mind they had to control the inferior race. The whites had many ways to control the slaves: economic control, social control, cultural control, physical control, psychological control and also slave codes/laws. Slave codes/laws were introduced in the middle of the seventeenth century by the British, Barbados being the first in 1661. The British colonies had no set laws as each colony had its own laws as they were

set by their individual Assembly. Even though the British laws varied, some were common. These were: A slave could buy his freedom but only with the consent of his owner. This was called manumission. This was rare as no planter would want to lose a slave hence this was also very expense. It was more favourable for female slaves who were in a relationship with a white. This, too, was very rare. Slave marriage was also discouraged and was considered immoral. In the British colonies, severe flogging, mutilation and the death penalty were frequent punishment for the slaves. The British Slaves were also denied any form of education and Christianity, at first, was not practiced and all non-Christian beliefs were prohibited. Also, because of the fear of rebellion, the British planters provided security in different ways; The Militia (military), British troops and Constables. The Spanish laws Las Siete Partidas and the French laws Code Noir were drawn up and enacted in Europe were very similar to each other. They both tried to disguise the cruelty and racism in the laws unlike the British. The Spanish laws acknowledged the fact that slavery was evil and not natural but it was necessary. This was the main difference with the Spanish laws. Some of the Spanish codes were: Christianity was encouraged; slaves were not to work on holy days and Sundays. Marriage and family was permitted with consent from the owner, slaves could compulsory manumitted for certain types of abuse (eg violation) and slaves could appeal to the court for ill treatment. The French Code (Code Noir) drawn up in France in 1685, was in my opinion the most humane code. Some laws were as follows: all slaves were to be baptised, food and clothes to be provided. Old and sick slaves to be fed and maintained, Slaves were forbidden to own property and anything the slave earned would be the property of the owner ,the Death penalty would be applied if a slave stroked his master or a mistress and the owners must treat the slaves humanely. There were also other methods of control: Economic control, they planters provided food, clothing and shelter and slaves could not own property, this made them dependent on their masters. Cultural

control, the planters changed their names, changed their language, banned their religious practices, banned their meetings at nights and also made them celebrate western holidays. Psychological control: the planters got the slaves to believe they were inferior, they were the barbaric race and they were mocked by the planters. Social control: the planters divided the plantations so the slaves would be separated from their families. Physical control: when other kinds of control failed, this was used. This could mean placing the slave sin stocks, beating the slave severely, mutilation and death. The slaves, to their benefit, did not just sit and take it, they resisted. Well they tried to. The tried two forms: Passive and Active Resistance. Passive resistance can be defined as resistance by the slaves which indirectly affected the plantation and are not very extreme or effective. Some means of passive resistance are: working slowly and idling, deliberate carelessness, faking illness, lying to create confusion, suicide etc. The other form is Active Resistance. This was much more serious than the passive resistance as it affects the estate directly and its more extreme. Some means of Active Resistance are: Damaging/destroying the owners property by breaking machinery to burning the mills and the ripe cane, maiming and killing the livestock, stealing estate property and some went as far as to try and kill the whites. The planters did not hesitate to punish the slaves, but it was not an easy task, because the slaves, especially with the passive resistance were not easily caught. Although these tasks were mainly done by the men, the women also played their part. The women would seduce the whites, sing satirical songs to mock whites, commit infanticide and abortion and they would also prolong their breast feeding to avoid working. Running away was also a way to resist slavery and many slaves did this. This, mass running away of slaves is called Marronage and slaves who did this, were called Maroons. Marronage originated in Hispaniola from as early as 1519. The success of Marronage in Hispaniola

established the pattern of Maroon settlements in Jamaica and Surinam and the response of authority to them. In Jamaica, in March 1732, the Militia captured the three chief Maroon settlements and in 1733 armed parties were defeated and towns that were captured were abandoned. An appeal was made and 200 sailors were sent to assist the Militia who were led to an ambush and were defeated. The First Maroon War had begun. The Maroons were more aggressive in this war because of their need for freedom but the constant attacks from the two hundred Moskito Indians, free blacks and coloureds that were recruited by the government wore them down and they sought peace. Hence, on March 1, 1739, the Article of Pacification, the treaty between the whites and the maroons was signed by Chief Cudjoe and other leaders from Trelawny Town. The Maroons were given freedom and the possession of all lands lying between Trelawney town and Cockpit Country (1500 acres). In return, the Maroons were not to attack the whites, return all runaway slaves for a reward and give assistance to planters. Also, two white superintendents were to live with the maroons to maintain a friendly relationship. That did not last for long as in 1795 a Second Maroon war begun. This was because they were dissatisfied by the governments attitude, they wanted the white superintendent, Captain Thomas Craskell to be removed and they were insulted by the way two maroons were punished. The war could have been prevented but because of the Black revolution in St Domingue, the whites wanted to be firm. That decision incited the Maroons who began to attack the whites and try to incite the slaves to rebel. The problems and tension continued between the whites and Maroons until in December when hunting dogs were brought into the country and their supplies were cut off and they surrendered.

The Bush Negroes of Surinam were similar to the Maroons of Jamaica. They were both started and maintained by runaway slaves, both were hostile to their white masters and both signed treaties with the Whites. Although similarities existed so did differences. The Bush Negroes were rebels who moved to the bush to plot the murders of the whites and to raid plantations. They lived beyond the rapids of the forest and their location was the main factor in their survival seeing that it was difficult for the whites to locate them, hence, after many failed expeditions they signed a treaty. Unlike with the Maroons, after the treaty was signed they kept the peace for thirty years. In 1795 they were bothered by Victor Hugues who was preaching freedom. They took advantage of the disruption caused by the Revolutionary Wars in St Domingue and they put strain on the Plantations in West Demerara. This lasted for several months until Indians were used to help track down the Bush Negroes. The Maroons, Bush Negroes and the resistance of the slaves were all affected or influenced by the Haitian Revolution which was the only rebellion to turn into a successful revolution. This was between 1791 and 1804. The Maroon attacks were the first manifestation of a revolt against French rule and the slaveholding system. The attacks certainly presaged the 1791 slave rebellion which evolved into the Haitian revolution. They also marked the beginning of a traditional martial for the blacks. The French Revolution, 1789, helped to trigger off the Haitian Revolution. In France the monarchy system, The King and Queen were beheaded and this led to a new system, The National Assembly, which issued the Declaration of Rights of Man which states that All men are born free and equal in rights. This gave the French Revolution their motto Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. In France, this meant the ending of feudalism, peace between all and the French Colonies thought it should have the same effect, so they began demanding equality. The Whites

were not giving them what they demanded so they decided to take matters into their own hands. The French Revolution also affected the coloureds, who did not like the way they were treated by whites: both the grand and petit blancs. The tension in Haiti sparked controversy and caused three revolts. The Whites disagreed with the French Government rulings and this led to a revolt. They were partially successful because they got to make their own laws but they were still controlled by France. The Coloureds Revolt, led by Vincent Oge with help from Jean Baptiste Chavannes was not successful. They did not include the Blacks in the Revolt so their forces were easily stopped. In August 1791, the Coloureds tried again, but with a new leader; Boukman and the slaves were this time included. The Coloureds then joined forces with the Whites but they were later betrayed by the Whites. The Coloureds then decided to join with the Blacks to exterminate the whites because of this betrayal. This back and forth of the Coloureds and Boukmans lack of planning led to extreme bloodshed and also the failure of this Revolt. During this Revolt the British were invited to take over St Domingue because of the constant bloodshed, the planters thought that if Britain ruled, the white would be back in power and things would return to normal. The British took over in June 1794. The other and main Revolt was that of the Blacks. Their leader was Toussaint Louverture, the main reason for their success.

Slavery was officially abolished in St Domingue in 1793 in a proclamation by Lger-Flicit Sonthonax, to try and resolve the problems the Haitian Revolution had caused and also it was an effort to return the peace to a chaotic St Domingue. The abolishment of slavery in St Domingue, led to more problems rather than solutions. The slaves were now free which meant they were able to take revenge on the whites and this is what they did. The island was in chaos,rebellions and death took over. On November 29,1803, Jean Jacque Dessalines, Henri Christophe

declared the island free from French rule, independent. The island was renamed Haiti, arawak for Land of Mountians. The independence should have meant great things for the island, but it was not so. Haiti got off to a rocky start ; economically,politically and socially. The price of independence was rough on Haiti. The death toll was numerous. Several thousands lives were lost, roughly, two hundred thousand blacks,numerous coloureds, and there were very few whites left in the country. Now that the slaves were free, their lives would now change completely. Socially, that was not such a bad thing. They were now free, they could do whatever they pleased, they could practice their religion, they did not have to work for the white man who thought they were barabric, they were free. The freedom, in their minds, was worth all the suffering and death caused by the Revolution and all the suffering to come. Economically, the island was ruined in the years following the Revolution, some may say it still is. Sugar was still being produced but it was way under normal standards, Independent Haiti could not support