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Oct 12, 1492
Begining Of Slaves
Christopher Columbus's expedition makes it's first landfall in the Caribbean. This event is regarded as having started the colonial conquest of the western hemisphere and it marks the beginning of centuries of enslavement and oppression of Native Americans (Taíno in the case of Hispaniola) and slaves from Africa -
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The French colony of Saint Domingue is the most lucrative colony in the world, at this time, more lucrative than the 13 Colonies. Its slave-produced tropical crops like sugar, rum, cotton, tobacco, and indigo. Generated great wealth. -
Treaty
A treaty is concluded between Toussaint and British general Maitland, stipulating a complete British withdrawal from Saint Domingue. The treaty has a secret rider giving Britain trade rights in the colony, but Toussaint turns down a suggestion that Britain would recognize him as king of Haiti.
An effort by French emissary General Hedouville to negotiate a peace between Rigaud and Toussaint does not succeed. -
No Weapons ???
Pursuing the war against the mulattos, Toussaint invades the south. The men give up their guns for knives and teeth, so great is the race hatred. -
War
Leclerc's invasion begins with a strength of approximately seventeen thousand troops. Toussaint, with approximately twenty thousand men under his command, orders the black generals to raise the coast towns and retreat into the interior, but because of either disloyalty or poor communications the order is not universally followed. Black general Christophe bums Le Cap to ashes for the second time in ten years, but the French occupy Port-au-Prince before Dessalines can destroy it. -
Independence
Jean-Jacques Dessalines declared Haiti independent after crushing the French army sent to re-enslave Haiti. Half the people in Haiti died before the struggle has run its course. -
Flags
Francisco de Miranda stayed in Jacmel, on the southern shore of Haiti, and designed the flag that later became the banner the liberation army led by Simón Bolívar -
Bans Trade
In 1806, Fearful that the Haitian revolution might inspire enslaved Africans in other parts of the world to rebel, US Congress bans trade with Haiti joining French and Spanish boycotts -
Assassination
Jean-Jacques Dessalines is killed at Pont-Rouge