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The Abolition of Slavery in the North, West, and South of Saint Domingue

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 December 2015

Robert Stein
Robert Stein*
Affiliation:
North Hollywood, California
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Extract

In the second half of 1793, slavery was abolished in the French colony of Saint Domingue or present-day Haiti. This was one of the most radical events of the French Revolution and one of the great moments in Caribbean history. Saint Domingue became the first land in the New World to outlaw slavery and to offer full rights to non-whites, yet there has been much confusion over how and when abolition occurred. Historians of the French Revolution have generally ignored abolition altogether, apparently as irrelevant to the “real” revolution, while Caribbeanists have frequently been guilty of publishing incorrect or at least incomplete versions. Even specialists in Haitian history have failed to distinguish between the various abolition proclamations which were issued between June 21 and October 31, 1793. It is the purpose of this paper to give a correct chronology to abolition and to show that it was due primarily to the efforts of one man, Léger Félicité Sonthonax, aided somewhat reluctantly by Etienne Polverel.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Americas , Volume 41 , Issue 3 , January 1985 , pp. 47 - 55
Copyright
Copyright © Academy of American Franciscan History 1985

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References

1 For example, Aulard, A., The French Revolution, 4 vol. (London, 1911)Google Scholar; Jaurès, J., Histoire socialiste de la Révolution française, 7 vol. (Paris, 1972)Google Scholar; Mathiez, A., The French Revolution (New York, 1928)Google Scholar; these historians do not mention abolition at all. Lefebvre, G., La Révolution française (Paris, 1951), p. 635,Google Scholar gives it a few lines.

2 For example, Watson, J., The West Indian Heritage (London, 1979), p. 102,Google Scholar says that Victor Hugues freed the slaves in Saint Domingue. Unfortunately, Hugues’ domain was Guadeloupe, not Saint Domingue. Nicole, C., The West Indies (London, 1965), p. 179,Google Scholar says “Sonthonax made himself dictator of Saint Domingue” and, p. 180, killed himself before 1798. In fact, he never challenged the power of his colleagues, and he died of natural causes in 1813. Sherlock, P., West Indian Nations, a New History (New York, 1973), p. 211,Google Scholar writes, “In August, 1793, Sonthonax decreed a conditional emancipation.” His emancipation, though it encouraged the freedmen to work, was not conditional, nor did it apply to all of Saint Domingue. Finally, Williams, E., From Columbus to Castro (London, 1970), pp. 250–1,Google Scholar ignores local abolition in Saint Domingue and focuses on the February 4, 1794, abolition decree of the National Convention in Paris; this, however, was merely a reaction to Sonthonax’ proclamation of general liberty in the North of Saint Domingue on August 29, 1793.

3 See the discussion below, and footnote 17.

4 For example, Necheles, R., The Abbé Grégoire (Westport, Conn., 1971), p. 123,Google Scholar says August 23; Laurent, G., Contribution à l’histoire de Saint Domingue (Port-au-Prince, 1971), pp. 135 Google Scholar and 136, says August 29, 1791, but these are certainly printer errors.

5 Heinl, R. and Heinl, N., Written in Blood (Boston, 1978), p. 60.Google Scholar See also Ott, T., The Haitian Revolution (Tennessee, 1973), p. 72.Google Scholar

6 See the proclamation in Archives Nationales (hereafter AN), D25 10 d.92, 29–8–1793.

7 Débats entre les accusés et les accusateurs dans l’affaire des colonies, 9 vol. (Paris, 1799), vol. 3, pp. 15ff.

8 For example, #63 (week of 18–9–1790), pp. 517–8.

9 The Decree of March 28, 1792 (Law of April 4), in Archives parlementaires, vol. 40, pp. 577–8.

10 See the instructions to the commissaires, AN D25 4 d. 420, 17–6–1792.

11 For the situation in Saint Domingue at this time, see Cabon, A., Histoire d’Haiti, 4 vol. (Port-au-Prince, nd), vol. 3, pp. 110–3.Google Scholar

12 AN D25 5 d. 51, 21–6–1793.

13 Proclamation of July 11, 1793, in AN D25 7 d. 70.

14 Proclamation of July 25, 1793, in AN D25 9 d. 91.

15 For example, AN D25 5 d. 52, 2–7–1793; AN D25 7 d. 70, 11–7–1793.

16 AN D25 10, 1–8–1793.

17 For example, Ardouin, B., Etudes sur l’histoire d’Haiti, 11 vol. (Paris, 1958), vol. 2, p. 54 Google Scholar; Cabon, , Histoire, vol. 3, p. 170 Google Scholar; Sannon, P., Histoire de Toussaint Louverture, 2 vol. (Port-au-Prince, 1933), I, pp. 156–7.Google Scholar

18 AN D25 12 d. 114.

19 AN D25 10, 27–8–1793.

20 AN D25 5, d. 53.

21 Ibid.

22 AN D25 44 d. 417.

23 AN D25 10, 4–9–1793.

24 AN D25 5 d. 53, 10–9–1793.

25 AN D25 12 d. 114, 16–9–1793.

26 AN D25 10.

27 AN D25 12.

28 AN D25 12 d. 114, 19–9–1793.

29 AN D25 9 d. 85, 12–7–1793.

30 AN D25 42 d. 412.

31 AN D25 9 d. 91, 25–7–1793.

32 AN D25 12 d. 114, 18–8–1793.

33 AN D25 12 d. 114, 8–9–1793.

34 AN D25 12 d. 114, 5–9–1793.

35 AN D25 12 d. 114, 8–9–1793.

36 AN D25 12 d. 114, 12–9–1793.

37 AN AA55 d. 1511, 12–9–1793.

38 AN D25 12 d. 114, 16–9–1793.

39 An D25 12 d. 114, 19–9–1793.

40 AN D25 31 d. 316; 22, 26, 27–9–1793.

41 AND25 12 d. 114, 30–9–1793.

42 AN AA55 d. 1512, 27–9–1793.

43 AN D25 10.

44 Ibid.

45 AN D25 10, proclamation of 31–10–1793.

46 Ibid.

47 AN D25 44 d. 420, 9–12–1793.

48 For recent discussions of Toussaint’s actions, see Pluchon, Pierre, Toussaint Louverture (Paris, 1979), pp. 44–53 Google Scholar; and Geggus, D., “The ‘Volte-Face’ of Toussaint Louverture,” Revue Française d’Histoire d’Outre-Mer, vol. 60 (1978), pp. 481–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

49 Bibliothèque Nationale, manuscrit français, 12102, 7–7–1794, Toussaint Louverture to Laveaux.