Candidate name: Kinayah Morain

School: The Anglican High School

Subject: Caribbean History
Theme: Resistance and Revolt
Title of study: What were the Factors that Led to
the Haitian Revolution in the 18th Century and
What Effects did it have on Haiti and the Wider
Caribbean?
Registration Number:
Teacher: Ms. L. Baptiste
Year or examination: 2022

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 Table of Contents

Topics Page#

Question………………………………………………………………………….3
Rationale ………………………………………………………………………...4
Introduction………………………………………………………………….......5
The Influence of the French Revolution……………………………………….6
The class system in St. Domingue…………………………………………….7-8
Racial Hatred…………………………………………………………………….9
The Treatment and Condition of the Slaves………………………………….10
The Role of Toussaint Louverture During the Haitian Revolution………11-12
The Effects of the Revolution Upon Haiti and the Wider Caribbean……13-14
Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………17
Bibliography …………………………………………………………………… 18

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 Question
What were the Factors that led to the Haitian Revolution in the 18th Century and
what Effects did it have on Haiti and the Wider Caribbean?

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 Rationale
The reason for this topic being chosen by the researcher is to better analyze
and interpret the factors that led to the Haitian Revolution in the 18th century and
the effects it had on Haiti and the Wider Caribbean. As history encourages critical
thinking, this topic brought that opportunity.
This topic itself was a very interesting one which played an instrumental part
for the researcher. To investigate this topic, the researcher read books, assembled
relevant information from the internet and elucidated them accordingly. Engaging
in this SBA (school-based assessment) would assist in improving the research
skills of the researcher and assist in summarizing large amounts of information by
deciphering relevant from irrelevant information, as well as broadening my
vocabulary.

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 Introduction

St. Domingue, the Pearl of the Antilles was France’s richest colony in the
18 Century. The Caribbean’s main producer of crops such as sugarcane, cotton,
th

tobacco, indigo and much more. St Domingue became rich due to its diversified
economy and fertile soil. St. Domingue produced nearly 90,000 tons of sugar from
800 plantations, in 1789 alone. Thirty thousand slaves per year entered St.
Domingue. Slavery made St. Domingue economically profitable for France. The
other European countries envied France due to its unique, successful and
diversified economy. However, this high level of production came at a cost to the
slaves. Severely overworked, poorly fed, beaten and generally ill-treated, the
slaves grew frustratingly with the deplorable working conditions on these
plantations. Public flogging, rape, mutilation and lynching were some of the less
severe tortures meted out to slaves for simple things such as working too slow or
stealing food if they were hungry.
As the revolution commenced, there were 450,000 slaves in St. Domingue,
most were African born slaves. Due to the great impact of the revolution, Haiti has
often been described as the largest and most successful slave rebellion in the
Western Hemisphere. It was the first country in the Caribbean to acquire its
freedom.
However, there were many factors that led to its Revolution in 1791. Due to
the revolution, there were several effects on Haiti and the Wider Caribbean. It was
a series of conflicts between 1791 and 1804. So brutal and severe, there was the
overthrowing of the French regime in Haiti by the Africans and their descendants
who had been enslaved by the French and the establishment of an independent
country founded and governed by former slaves.
The Haitian Revolution is significant… why? Because Haiti was the only
country where slave freedom was taken by force. The revolution had a profound
impact, it was the only anti-colonial rebellion revolt that succeeded. The rebellion
propelled French citizenship. As a result of the revolution, slavery was abolished in
the French Empire. Furthermore, in this SBA you will recognize the factors that
led to and the impacts of the Haitian Revolution.

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 The Influence of the French Revolution

The French Revolution had a very intense impact on the colony of St.
Domingue. In the 18th century, St. Domingue became France's wealthiest overseas
colony because of its production of sugar, coffee, indigo, and cotton, produced by
the slaves.
This Revolution consisted of protests for equal rights, better treatment, the
cruel regime of the monarchy and much more concerning issues. These people
influenced the revolts in Haiti for freedom of the enslaved, free blacks, and the
maroons.
When the French Revolution arose in 1789 there were the white planters
who owned the plantations, the slaves and Petit Blancs who were artisans, shop
keepers and teachers, some of them also owned a few slaves. Together they
numbered 40,000 of the colony’s residents.
The French revolution broke out in 1789. France was then ruled by King
Louis the 16th (XVI). There was much bloodshed, and the King and Queen were
beheaded by Guillotine, a machine with a heavy sharp blade sliding vertically in
grooves, used for beheading people. It was a cruel one. Why did this happen?
When did it happen? Who had a part to play in this? …Many of the whites in St.
Domingue began to support an independence movement which began when France
imposed steep tariffs on the items imported into the colony. Steep tariffs, which
may be referred to as high taxes, played a vital role in the revolution. Due to
France being ruled monarchial style, the King and Queen ruled. As referred to by
Wikipedia, a monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is
head of state for life or until abdication. During that time the nobility lived off the
backs of the people, hence the reason for high taxes. There weren’t any reasonable
prices for the different class systems, they all had to pay the same price whether it
be the Petit Blancs or Slaves. This obviously created frustration and some form of
anger.
Additionally, the planters were extremely disappointed with France because
they were forbidden to trade with any other nation. Furthermore, the white
population of Saint-Domingue did not have any representation in France, and this
became an issue.

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 The Class System in St. Domingue

Diagram showing the class systems in St. Domingue

The Grand Blancs were made up of wealthy planters, leading civil and
military officers. They made up the ruling class of St. Domingue. They had all the
power and position. They also refused to share their power and position with the
other groups in Haitian Society. The Grand Blancs consisted of white people.
The Petit Blancs, or small whites, were those who were largely established
in the Saint Domingue economic and social spheres for no other reason than the
color of their skin. They were the poor and uneducated, and history has referred to
them as the "white negroes" of Saint Domingue. They were made up of
Government officials, managers, overseers, professional artisans and small
shopkeepers. They wanted political and social equality with the Grand Blancs, they
wanted to be equal with them. However, they did not want equality for the
coloreds.
The Colored’s were also known as the Affranchis people. Why? Because
they could not vote. Many of the Mulattoes were affluent and educated. They were
also numerous. They owned a third of the land in St. Domingue and they also have
possession of many slaves even though they had a trace of black ancestry.
However, the whites abhorred them and there were many curtailments placed on
them. Curtailments such as they could not do certain jobs, they could not be
officers in the militia, they could not wear the same style of clothes as the whites,
they also could not carry firearms and they had no political power.

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 The Slaves greatly outnumbered the whites and coloreds in
St. Domingue. They were not treated equitably by them
white and colored masters. The slaves despised them
masters and had a sizeable aspiration to be emancipated.

Picture showing the slaves after picking

cotton

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 Racial Hatred

'Racial hatred' is a term used to describe a range of behaviors, from abuse or

harassment based on race. The population in St. Domingue was divided based on
their color. The division of the different races were submerged in feelings of
dubiety against each other, even the whites were disunited. They were divided into
rich and poor whites. The rich whites were known as The Grand Blancs, and the
poor whites were known as the Petit Blancs, they did not converse with each other.
However, the mulattoes wanted political and social impartiality with the
Grand Blancs considering, the Petit Blancs also wanted political and social
impartiality with the Grand Blancs. The slaves at the foundation unambiguously
wanted their freedom.

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 The Treatment and Conditions of the Slaves

The slaves worked under savage conditions to

produce sugar and other commodities. Worn out
by their labors all through the day and far into the
night, many neglected to cook and ate the food raw.
The slaves in St. Domingue were treated barbarously.
The ratio of slaves to whites in St. Domingue was
12:1. This meant that for every twelve slaves there
was one white person. The slaves worked sedulously,
Picture showing the slaves at work
they were maltreated and poorly fed. This caused
them to become indignant towards their masters. The highest death rate of slaves
in the West Indies was from St. Domingue. The labor force had to be renewed
every five years. During the suffering of the slaves, their masters became richer
and richer within each passing year. The slaves truly disliked their masters and had
a focused vision on terminating them when the revolt broke out.

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 The Role of Toussaint Louverture During the
Haitian Revolution

Toussaint Louverture whose original name is

François Dominique, was born in 1743, near
Cap-François, Saint-Domingue. He was a
dedicated Roman Catholic, opposed to Voodoo.
He dressed simply and was abstemious and a
vegetarian. Although he slept little, his energy
and capacity for work were astonishing. A picture showing Toussaint Louverture

He inspired many people as a leader. He was a former slave who rose

through the ranks to become the leader of the Haitian Revolution, the only
successful slave revolt in modern history. He freed the slaves and negotiated for
the French colony on Hispaniola, Saint-Domingue, to be temporarily governed as a
French protectorate by Black former slaves. When France and Spain went to war in
1793, Toussaint was knighted and recognized as a general, and he drew renowned
warriors such as his nephew Moise and two future Haitian monarchs, Jean-Jacques
Dessalines and Henry Christophe.
Toussaint defeated the French as well as invading Spanish and British
armies attempting to quell the rebellion. The blacks rejoiced, and Toussaint
Louverture was ecstatic. Toussaint agreed to help the French army drive the British
and Spaniards out. He demonstrated his ability as a general by winning seven
battles in seven days. He was appointed de facto governor of the colony.
As the French were eager to return to their jobs, more moderate rulers came
and went, eventually being succeeded by Napoleon, who wielded dictatorial
powers over France. He reinstated slavery in the French colonies in response to
plantation owners' pleas, plunging Haiti back into war.
By 1803 Napoleon was ready to let go of Haiti: he and Toussaint agreed on
terms of peace. Napoleon agreed to recognize Haitian independence, and Toussaint
agreed to leave public life.

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 In addition, Toussaint's skill in negotiating with the different countries
helped him and his soldiers navigate the tricky path to victory and freedom. In
conclusion, Toussaint paid a very large role in St. Domingue's success in gaining
independence and giving the slaves emancipation.

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 The Effects of the Revolution Upon Haiti and The Wider
Caribbean

The Haitian Revolution was a brutal one.

It had many effects such as political chaos,
the loss of lives, economic ruin, and the boos
to other sugar producers.

Economic ruin, The Haitian Revolution,

and the subsequent declaration of independence
A picture showing activities held during the
caused an economic decline that has left Haiti mired revolution
in poverty. Several crucial factors caused this decline.
First, the warfare of the Haitian Revolution destroyed the capital and infrastructure
of the economy. Currently, Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the West Indies.
However, Haiti was once the French colony of St. Domingue. It was the wealthiest,
most profitable colony in the world. It became the prime destination for fortune-
seeking Frenchmen.
Independent Haiti could not support large Estates because the ex-slaves
were not willing to undertake plantation labor. Organized labor was disrupted, and
this led to the failure to maintain the irrigation works in the Western Plain, and to
the floods of 1800. Some of the most productive lands in Haiti were lost due to
floods. Haiti suffered repeated flooding and erosion. However, the new subsistence
economy in Haiti authorized independence to be preserved and made Haiti the first
country in the New World to abolish slavery successfully. This was an
achievement which was worth economic sacrifices. At first, Britain, France, Spain
and the United States put a prohibition on trade with Haiti. By the time the
prohibition was lifted, Haiti had lost all her means of production and her markets,
and never recovered them.

Political Chaos, after the independence, there was a political mutability in

Haiti. On October 1804, Jean Jacques Dessalines was crowned Emperor Jacques I,
he was disbanded two years later. The Eastern part of Hispaniola, which Is known
as Dominican Republic, seceded and came under Spain. Haiti itself was divided
into a kingdom in the North under Henri Christophe who was crowned King Henri
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in 1811, and a republic in the South under General Petion. In 1812 the North and
South were at war with each other, and Petion captured Port-au-Prince. However,
they made peace in 1814 as they feared another invasion from France. In the North
Christophe created a medieval-type monarchy, building himself a huge fortress to
the South of Cap François, now renamed Cap Haitian, at La Ferriere. He had a
friendly relationship with Britain and proposed an alliance against Napoleon. Even
though the independence constitution had abolished slavery, people were forced to
work on the Sugar Estates to try and resuscitate the export trade. His despotic cruel
regime made him unpopular, there was even a revolt against him which may have
led him to commit suicide in 1820.
In the South, Petion was not prepared to face the unpopularity of forced
labor and he gave way to the peasants, allowing them to set up smallholdings
which became the pattern of Haiti’s agriculture for the future. Petion died in 1818
and was succeeded by Jean Pierre Boyer, his nominated successor. Due to the
suicide of Christophe, Boyer became ‘life regent’ of the whole of Haiti. In 1822
Boyer reoccupied Eastern Hispaniola and this remained under Haitian rule until
1844.
In 1815 the King of France tried to convince both Christophe and Petion to
put themselves under the French once again, but they refused and maintained Haiti
independence and freedom from slavery. In 1825 France recognized the
independence of Haiti on condition of payment of compensation, but only a
fraction of the full amount was actually paid. In 1826 Britain recognized Boyer’s
rule of an independent Haiti, but the United States withheld recognition until 1862
because they thought that it would encourage their own slaves in the Southern
states to rebel.

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The Boost to other Sugar Producers
The disruption of St Domingue’s sugar industry boosted sugar production
elsewhere. The event that most British Sugar planters had been hoping for since
the Seven Years’ war had finally approached. A contemplation of the expanding
sugar trade of the British Islands was the opening of the West India docks in
London in 1800. The West India docks were built for the West India dock
company in 1802. It is a series of three docks, quaysides and warehouses structured
to import goods from and export goods and from time to time, passengers to the
British West Indies on the Isle of Dogs in London. Prices of sugar on the London
market rose from 54 shillings and 3 pence per hundred weights in 1792 to 69
shillings 2 pence per weight in 1796. The prices fell but rose again in 1807. After
another drop, they gained 96 shillings per weight, some sales topped 100 shillings
per weight by 1814.
The British Islands sold sugar vastly in Europe, and eventually the British
Islands took over part of St. Domingue’s trade with the United States. Impulsion
was also given to sugar production elsewhere. The sugar industry started in 1794,
in Louisiana and by 1800 there were eighty-one successful plantations. The Indian
sugar industry had been established before the downfall of St. Domingue, and
William Pitt, the British Prime Minister, had an opinion that India should take over
the European sugar market. The very first sugar exports from India had reached ten
thousand tons per year. At that time, in Europe, Prussia started the sugar beet
industry with the heartening of the King. However, it was Cuba to suit the
successor to St. Domingue as the world’s prime sugar producer and to ravage
many British planters in the nineteenth century.

Loss of Life
It is estimated that the Haitian Revolution had a total death toll of
approximately 345,000. Most of these deaths were among former slaves who rose
up in protest against poor working conditions. Before, the rebellion escalated and
then became a revolution. In the fighting of 1791 as many as 10 000 blacks died;
another 30 000 died before the end of the century in the countless wars against the

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colored and the British. 60, 000 blacks were killed in the campaigns of Leclerc and
Rochambeau. Thousands of blacks were murdered or starved in the anarchy also.
The yellow fever epidemic broke out in 1802, it was terrible. This epidemic caused
many deaths among the people of Haiti. The yellow fever caused the death of
60,000 blacks. Also, the French lost many soldiers in this epidemic.
Between 1791 and 1803 about 20,000 blacks dies. This was between a third
and a half of the population. A few lost their lives in Oge’s rising of 1790, and
many more in Sonthonax’s terror of 1792-1793. Many were killed fighting in
Rigaud’s army against the British between 1794 and 1795. In addition, after the
British withdrawal, Toussaint turned against the colored’s and Dessalines
massacred many of them when Rigaud, Petion and Boyer joined Leclerc’s army,
and more were killed. In 1791 there was between 30,000 and 35,000 creole whites
in St. Domingue, the term creole whites generally refer to persons of upper-class
French or Spanish ancestry, and even German ancestry. By the end of Dessalines’
rule in 1806 there were almost none. It was said that they virtually disappeared.
Thousands were killed in the uprising of 1791 and many more went into exile
(banishment)in 1791, 1793 – 1794 and 1795-98. Whites left the North and the rest
who stayed or returned in the relative peace of 1800-02 were massacred by
Dessalines.
The loss of lives to foreign armies was also high, due to both fighting and
yellow fever. During 1793 and 1798 there was about 80,000 soldiers of the British
in St. Domingue, about 40,000 dies. 20,000 from yellow fever. Estimated, the
French lost about 50,000 soldiers.

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 Conclusion

The Haitian Revolution was a symbol for millions of slaves and people
fighting for their liberty throughout the world. I can safely say that the revolution
had a harsh and large impact on Haiti. As we read and read, it is recognized that
the high death toll is not only a result of conflict; but also, of the widespread of the
yellow fever and massacres on both sides. As a result of the revolution, St.
Domingue slaves won their freedom; establishing Haiti as just the second
independent nation in the Americas, and the only nation in History to have been
founded by former slaves.
The Haitian Revolution was a booster for many other revolts in the Western
Caribbean. This revolt consisted of many important people such as Toussaint
Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Henri Christophe, Alexandre Petion, and
much more. Additionally, it has been concluded that the Haitian Revolution
secured black independence in the former French colony and sounded the death
knell for the European slave trade.

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 Bibliography

Book 1
Name of Book: Emancipation to Emigration 2
Authors: Robert Greenwood, Shirley Hamber
Publisher: London: Macmillan Education
Year Published: 2008

Book 2
Name of Book: Lest You Forget Movements Towards Emancipation
Author: Doris Hamilton-Willie
Publisher: Doris Hamilton-Willie
Year Published:

Book 3
Name of Book: Freedoms Won (Caribbean Emancipations, Ethnicities and
Nationhood)
Authors: Hilary McD. Beckles, Verene A. Sheperd
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Year Published: 2008

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 Websites

o Statista.com
o Wikipedia.com
o Brittanica.com

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