Professor Corbett Haitian History Files

 

 

Revolutionary War 1791-1803 >

 

Notes on Toussaint Louverture


P. 70-73. Sir Spenser St. John for a very favorable assessment of Toussaint.


P. 68 Heinl. On Toussaint's Volte-face Also in Heinl: Civil War between Toussaint and Rigard broke out on June 18, 1799 By Sept. the U.S. was at Toussaint's side. Civil War. p. 89. By Aug. 1, 1800 Rigaud sailed to Gaudeloupe then to France. Petion and Geffrard too.

Jan. 26, 1801 Toussaint received the keys of S.D. (p. 92) Sept. 30, 1800 U.S. France with agreement of Mortfontaine ended their quasi-war. This opened the door for Napoleon.


See Bind 41 H for Steward's chapter on Toussaint in prison, includes letters.

Basic data:

  • Born 1743 (Cooper) 1744 in Korngold
  • Died April 7, 1803.
  • He signed his own name without the ' (Hunt, p. 3.)
  • P. 95 (Hunt) sources on Toussaint: leads John Greenleaf Whittier in Lydia M. Child The Freedman's Book Boston, 1865 Wordsworth in Lydia M. Child An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans (1836)
  • Lamartine wrote a play about Toussaint
  • Victor Hugo's first novel Bug-Jargal was about St. Domingue and the revolution.
  • Waxman, p. 5 or 6. Auguste Comte in Calendrier Positiviste included Toussaint among those worthy to replace the calendar of saints, along with Plato, Washington, Buddha and Charlemagne!
  • Waxman. born about 1743 Francois Dominique Toussaint. Plantation of Breda. No white blood in Toussaint. He could read and write and knew something of folk leaf medicine. From Abbe Reynal's book Toussaint read that slaves needed a leader.
  • Roots of Dechokaj:  (Waxman) Toussaint on ship being taken to France:

    "In overthrowing me, only the trunk of the tree of negro liberty has been cut down; its branches will shoot up again, for its roots are numerous and deep." (p. 216).



 

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