Initial Uprisings
What island was the location of the initial uprisings that started the Haitian Revolution?
Saint-Domingue (the French colony on Hispaniola)
Who became the most famous leader of the Haitian Revolution and later declared himself Emperor of Haiti?
Toussaint Louverture
Which group in Saint-Domingue made up the largest portion of the population and labored on plantations?
Enslaved Africans
In what year did the major slave uprising at Bois Caïman occur?
1791
Name one Enlightenment idea that inspired leaders and participants in the Haitian Revolution
Natural rights, liberty, equality, popular sovereignty
Who led the Vodou ceremony at Bois Caïman in 1791 that helped spark coordinated slave uprisings?
Dutty Boukman (Boukmann) is commonly credited with leading the Bois Caïman ceremony.
Which French revolutionary official offered rights to free people of color in Saint-Domingue in 1792, altering alliances?
Léger-Félicité Sonthonax (and Étienne Polverel — Sonthonax is often noted)
What term was used for free people of African descent who often owned property and sometimes slaves?
Gens de couleur libres (free people of color)
In what year did Toussaint Louverture effectively take control of much of Saint-Domingue?
Around 1796–1800 (Toussaint consolidated power by the mid‑1790s; commonly cited 1796–1801 period)
How did the slogan "liberty, equality, fraternity" influence demands in Saint-Domingue?
It provided a moral and rhetorical foundation for calls to end slavery and demand equal rights.
Name one major cause of the 1791 uprisings related to plantation conditions and labor
Brutal working conditions, brutal punishment, long hours, poor food; plantation economy and desire for freedom.
Name a prominent leader of the early slave revolts other than Toussaint Louverture.
Jean-François Papillon, Georges Biassou, or Boukman (depending on timing)
Describe the economic and political power held by the white planter class (grand blancs)
Grand blancs owned plantations and most wealth; they held political influence and wanted to maintain economic control.
Which year did France abolish slavery in its colonies (first abolition during the revolutionary period)?
1794 (the National Convention in France abolished slavery in French colonies; later Napoleon tried to reverse)
Explain how debates about natural rights challenged the colonial order in Saint-Domingue.
Natural rights argued that all humans have rights to life, liberty, and property, undermining justifications for slavery.
What was the role of maroon communities in the early uprisings?
Maroons were communities of escaped enslaved people who resisted and sometimes allied with revolt leaders, using guerrilla tactics and offering refuge
Which foreign general captured Toussaint Louverture in 1802, sending him to France?
General Charles Leclerc (Napoleon’s brother-in-law) led the expedition that captured Toussaint Louverture; Toussaint was deported and died in France.
How did the social status of gens de couleur (free people of color) contribute to tensions before the revolution?
Gens de couleur faced legal and social discrimination despite often being property owners; their push for equal rights intensified conflict with whites.
In what year did Napoleon send an expedition to reassert French control over Saint-Domingue?
1802
Describe a contradiction between how Enlightenment ideas were applied in France and how colonial authorities treated enslaved people.
French revolutionary rhetoric promoted universal rights, but colonial authorities often denied those rights to enslaved people and people of color, showing hypocrisy.
Explain how the French Revolution's events in France influenced the initial uprisings in Saint-Domingue.
News of the French Revolution, debates over rights for free people of color, and weakening metropolitan control encouraged enslaved people to revolt.
Identify one mulatto (free person of color) leader who played a significant political role during the revolution and briefly state their contribution
André Rigaud (mulatto leader in the South, rival to Louverture) — led the War of the Knives and represented interests of gens de couleur.
Explain how the revolution transformed the social hierarchy of Saint-Domingue by the 1800s.
The revolution abolished slavery and led to a society where formerly enslaved people became citizens and leaders, overturning the previous plantation-based hierarchy.
What year is commonly recognized as Haiti’s declaration of independence?
1804 (Haiti declared independence on January 1, 1804)
Analyze how Enlightenment thought shaped the international reaction to Haiti’s independence (choose one perspective: European powers, United States, or Caribbean colonies) and provide one reason for that reaction.
Example answer — European powers: many were hostile and refused to recognize Haiti because a successful slave revolt threatened their own colonies and economic interests.