The Sentiment That Inspired The American Revolution

On January 1st 1804, a former slave by the name of Jean Jacques Dessalines declared Haiti’s independence against the French colony, thus making Saint Domingue, now Haiti the first black independent nation. Thirteen years before, in 1791, with the help of Toussaint l’Ouverture, the slaves in the north side of Saint Domingue started a rebellion to revolt against the French. This rebellion will open the gates of the revolution, defeating the French and forcing them out of Haiti. This first slave-led revolution caused fear and confusion among slave owners, but an apparent beacon of hope for slaves, and became an inspiration to many slaves and civil rights activists abroad, such as Frederick Douglas, Nat Turner and many more. Jean Jacques Dessalines,
Even after the independence, the fear of being invaded by foreign forces remained in Haitians. After Toussaint L’ouverture’s captivation and death, Dessalines became the sole leader of the army of slaves. Although “French troops remain in the eastern part of Hispaniola and France is actively lobbying England, Spain and the United States to isolate Haiti commercially and diplomatically (History of Haiti)”, Dessalines was determined that slavery would never return on the island. He, along with other generals, swore to “renounce France forever, to die rather than live under its domination, and to combat with their last breath for Independence” (Brown 229). Yes, the revolution was complex and several revolts during these thirteen years led to the largest and most successful emancipation of slavery in the Western hemisphere. But what pursued Jean Jacques Dessalines to take over to plan and lead this
But Dessalines didn’t stop there. He continued to order many battles against the French to capture the remaining towns still under French occupation. In doing so, houses and plantations were destroyed, casualty rate increased in both sides. As Joan Dayan wrote in Haiti, History and the Gods “…the terrors of pestilence, a city become one vast charnel house, the smell of putrefied corpses, black terror, white sentiment... (152). As the days lead on the largest battle of the Haitian revolution, Dessalines and the other generals were faced with an obstacle; more troops were sent in from France. Dessalines’ army was outnumbered. In early 1803 became an ally with Britain, when a war is renewed between France and Britain. In April of that same year, a treaty was signed between France and the United States for the purchase of Louisiana that France has obtained from Spain. Due to the failure of Napoleon’s establishment of a new French Empire in America, France no longer wanted the land of Louisiana and sold it for a mere $15 million. As Brown wrote, “Louisiana had become expendable because St Domingo had not been reconquered (227)” from the former slaves of the island. In conclusion, the Louisiana Purchase was made possible because of the