Have you ever wondered what a revolution
looks like?
Does it look something like this?
Or like this?
Or even like this?
Are you confused or
unsure? Fear not, for today we’ll go on an adventure back in time to meet a
slave from the Haitian Revolution …………….
Please fasten your seatbelts as you travel back in time, with me, detective Prithipal, on this time machine for an adventure
back to 17th century Saint-Domingue, to find out more about what a
revolution truly is…….
Saint-Domingue from 1760-1789
 |
| Black slaves (field-hands) working on plantations before the revolution began |
 |
| The slave revolt in 1791, where the slaves outnumbered the whites 10:1. |
 |
| The battle against Napolean and Lelerc's troops to drive out the French from the colony. |
Detective: Wow what chaos this land has seen….. What has happened here? Who are you?
Slave: My name is
Vryheid, I was a black slave in Saint-Domingue,
but through the Haitian Revolution, I am now a citizen of the first black
nation in the West.
Me: I’ve never heard of the Haitian Revolution? Isn’t Haiti
where the Earthquake was?
Slave: Yes, but before the Haitian revolution, we were
called Saint Domingue, as a French colony.
Me: Ooooh but this word ‘Revolution’, what does it mean?
Slave: Children of the 21st century know
this song the wheels on the bus go round and round…. All
through the town….. Yes? Actually a
revolution is something like the wheels on the bus.
Slave: Like the revolution of wheels on the bus which
starting turning as the bus moves away from where it was parked, a revolution
in the world is when people move away and challenge traditional systems, practices
and ideas in society and begin a journey towards change as the wheels of the
bus start turning to reach new places or perceptions and ideas.
Me: I still don’t
understand…
Slave: You see, the
Haitian Revolution is like the turning of the wheels. The wheels started
turning for the slaves and the bus began when Dutty Boukman held a
voodoo service and a woman was possessed by the warrior spirit ,
proclaiming that a journey should start for slaves to stand up and go against
the white masters. They then launched a violent rebellion which was scary for
the whites who were outnumbered by 10:1.
Me: Oh my…. Did
they succeed?
Slave: Not until 1973 with another turn of the wheel
when war broke out between France and Britain and the British invaded
Saint-Domingue for its riches.
Me: *Gasps* Huh what happened?
Slave: Sonothaux was appointed commissioner of Saint
Domingue to help calm the slave rebellion , but once King Louis XVI was killed,
the slaves lost trust in the French and went over to Spain who gave them
supplies to attack the French in Saint- Domingue.
Me: What did
Sonothaux do then?
Slave: He knew that the slaves wanted freedom and would
fight for it, and Toussaint-Louverture had a slave army of 15000 who could help fight for
the French. Touissant agreed to this, seeing that the Spanish were losing in
Europe. It was another major turn of the
wheels of the bus when Toussaint agreed to return to the French side for
freedom of slaves, hence on,29 August 1793, Sonothaux declared the end of
slavery in Saint-Domingue.
Me: So all
this while Toussaint was the driver of the bus?
Slave: Yes, he
was. He had trained the slave army and the escaped slaves (the maroons),
gaining control of the Spanish Santo Domingo that the Spanish had given to the
French and drove the British out of Saint Domingue during the war. After Sonothax
left, he declared himself governor
general for life. He was essentially the driver of the bus, who headed the bus
to the destination of an Independent black nation.
Me: But Saint-Domingue was still
under French rule?
Slave: Yes, he claimed to be a
loyal French citizen but Britain and the US treated Toussaint as though he was
the head of an independent state. Therefore, Napolean could not stand Touissant
and once France and Britain signed a peace treaty, he invaded Saint-Domingue, defeating
the Touissant and tricking him into arrest.
Me: Oh oh…… then the leaders of Saint-Domingue
took the French flag and tore out the white in it, announcing that it was time
to drive out the whites. Furthermore, Britain who were their allies, declared war on
France not only meant a shortage of supplies for the French but also arms and
naval support for the Saint-Dominguens who were allies of the British provided
them with naval support and arms while the French were short on supplies.
Finally on 19 November 1803, the
Republic of Haiti was born.
Me: Wow, so now the bus has
reached its destination.
Slave: It’s not just that, like
how many marks are left on the road by the wheels of the bus, the major mark
left was that the first black nation arose in the world.
Me: Let me guess, many other
countries were very inspired by how they gained Independence right?
Slave: Definitely, the success of
the Haitian blacks which drove the movement for Independence in South America,
inspiring blacks in Venzuela to fight for freedom as well.
Me: I thought
Venezuela sought help from Haiti
who supplied troops and financed much of the war
Slave: Yup exactly, many slaves rose up to fight for
their freedom in USA and Jamaica and even escaped to Haiti for protection,
because of the marks left on the road and but they were also inspired to drive
the bus like Toussaint.
Me: Wow, the slave owners must have been really
scared that their slaves would rebel. So revolutions really do leave marks on
the road….
Slave:
Not just marks, deep marks, the Haitian Revolution had a deeper and more
lasting impact on the image and new born national identity of free blacks. They
say that it was the glory of the blacks and the terror of the tyrants….
Me: You
would be glad to know that Touissant left really deep marks on the road then,
because in 3 years ago, the first black president of the United States took
office.
Slave: Then, he has done Haitians and all blacks in
the world proud.
So Basically…..
A revolution involves changes that challenge traditional
ideas and systems in society, which may face resistance in the process, but
give results with lasting and notable impacts on human lives.
By now you should know that there is much more to a revolution than this:
Bibliography:
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Social Studies for Kids website (n.d.), How Haiti Saved the United States, Part 2: The Haitian Revolt, retrieved from http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/haitianrevolution2.htm
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Pictures taken from:
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Som Wang, (17/12/11), Thinking Inwardly and Not Outwardly, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from
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Cristina Gallardo (2010), The Wheels On The Bus Song retrieved on 15/4/2012 from http://cristinaenglishteacher.blogspot.com/
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Bob Corbett (n.d.), Haiti: The Revolution of 1791-1803, An Historical Essay in Four Parts, retreived on 14/4/2012 from http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/revolution/revolution1.htm
Social Studies for Kids website (n.d.), How Haiti Saved the United States, Part 2: The Haitian Revolt, retrieved from http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/haitianrevolution2.htm
Trinity College Official Website ( 10 May 2000), Haiti, retreived from 16/4/2012 from http://www.trincoll.edu/classes/hist300/group3/haiti.htm
F.W. Knight (2000), The Haitian Revolution, retrieved on 16/4/2012, from http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ahr/105.1/ah000103.html
Pictures taken from:
Grace Mode (2012, ), Ferris Wheel is, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from http://gracemode.blogspot.com/2012/01/ferris-wheel-is.html
Som Wang, (17/12/11), Thinking Inwardly and Not Outwardly, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from
H. Kaiter (2011), Rotation and Revolution, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from http://mail.colonial.net/~hkaiter/Rotation_Revolution.html
Lyrics search website, (n.d.), Wheels on The Bus Lyrics, retrieved on 16/4/2012 from http://lyricsdog.eu/lyrics/918435
Danny Cardle (1998), The Time Machine Project---Danny Cardle, retrieved on 16/4/2012 from http://colemanzone.com/Time_Machine_Project/Danny%20Cardle.htm
Sarah McCulloh (n.d.), The School Corner, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from http://www.sarahmcculloch.com/essays.php
Jeff (2010), Revolution Honours, retrieved on 16/4/2012 from http://jeffsmithrevolutionshonors.blogspot.com/2010/12/causes-and-effects-of-haitian.html
Cristina Gallardo (2010), The Wheels On The Bus Song retrieved on 15/4/2012 from http://cristinaenglishteacher.blogspot.com/
Lynn C.D. (2012), Steps to Embracing Change or Becoming a "Change-Hugger", retrieved from on 17/4/2012, http://www.deborahshanetoolbox.com/steps-to-embracing-change-or-becoming-a-%E2%80%9Cchange-hugger%E2%80%9D/
Kathleen Cason (n.d.), In Black and White, retreived on 16//4/2012 from http://researchmagazine.uga.edu/summer2005/francophones03.htm
Nok-Benin (2004), Slave Trade: Haiti, Francois Dominique Toussaint L'Ouverture , retrieved on 14/4/2012 from http://www.nok-benin.co.uk/religion/slave_america.htm
M.P. Crie (2010), The Inner City Blog, Your Haitian Story, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from http://innercc.wordpress.com/
Nanook (2010), Nanook of the South, retrieved on 14/4/2012 from http://nanookofthesouth.wordpress.com/2010/02/21/arkansas-is-a-place-where-dreams-come-true/
History.com (n.d.), Photos Barrack Obama, retrieved on 17/4/2012 from http://www.history.com/topics/barack-obama/photos
