The Forum

Late 18th-Century Saint Domingue in the Caribbean – now known as Haiti – was one of the richest countries in the world. Known as ‘the pearl of the Antilles’, its wealth was built almost entirely on slavery. Around half a million enslaved Africans were transported to the French colony to work on the sugar plantations. Toussaint L’Ouverture was destined to see out his days within this brutal system, but his skills as a negotiator and communicator saw him rise to the forefront of the resistance movement on the island. A wily and charismatic operator, he galvanised his fellow countrymen and women to lead history’s first and only successful slave uprising. Diverging from French colonial rule brought him to the attention of Napoleon Bonaparte, who sent a large fleet to re-establish slavery on Saint Domingue. The expedition ended with Toussaint’s capture and exile to France, where he died in a cold prison cell in 1803. But his generals meanwhile carried on the struggle to uphold Toussaint’s opposition to slavery,