Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) was a critical change in Caribbean and world history: it
was the only slave revolting uprising in the whole of the Americas and the formation of Haiti as
an independent nation in 1804. This revolution occurred on the Island of Saint-Domingue, which
was a French colony in the early 1800s in the Caribbean and was famed for the production of
sugar by the Africans who were reduced to slavery. It was fueled by social injustices and
oppressions of slavery alongside the principle of freedom that was readily being demanded
worldwide in the late 18th century. It was the Haitian Revolution’s most important leaders, like
Toussaint Louverture, Jean Jacques Dessalines, and Henri Christophe, who facilitated the
ideological and military actions for resistance and eventually led to the birth of an independent
empire. An important aspect of the Haitian Revolution is its immediate consequences and the
further effects that the revolution had on anti-colonial struggles around the globe.
Secondary source:
Eddins, Crystal. “Maroon movements against empire: The long Haitian revolution,
sixteenth-nineteenth centuries.” Journal of World-Systems Research 28.2 (2022):
219-241. https://doi.org/10.5195/jwsr.2022.1108
In her scholarly article, Eddins (2022, p.220) discusses the vast context of the Haitian
Revolution through the history of maroon spaces over centuries. Outlining that maroons, slaves
who escaped to remote areas to establish their settlements, were an essential component in the
fight against colonial authorities prior to and during the Haitian Revolution. It should be noted
that Eddins (2022, p.230) investigates the ways these maroon movements engaged the power
structures of France, Spain, and England in the Caribbean region from the 16th to the 19th
centuries. In paying attention to the agency and tactics of maroons, Eddins illuminates the
sustained acts of resistance that ultimately led to the abolition of slavery and colonialism in Haiti.
In her work, she avails herself of nuances that interconnect the anti-colonial movements as well
as the permanent influence of the grassroots on the Caribbean history.
What were the key factors that supported the Haitian Revolution, and how do historiographical
visions of leadership during the revolution differ in explaining its success? Some historians insist
that leadership played a major role, while others focus on socio-economic parameters. How can
both views be integrated into a coherent analysis of the revolution’s significance for anti-colonial
struggles?