Haitian Constitution of 1801
by Toussaint Louverture · Constitution de la colonie française de Saint-Domingue
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1801
- Language
- French
- Length
- Short · 20 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendThe Haitian Revolution, A Documentary HistoryHackett, 2014David Geggus's collection puts the constitution among the decrees, letters and reports around it.
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The constitution Toussaint Louverture had drawn up for Saint-Domingue in 1801, after he had taken control of the whole island while still nominally under French rule. Its seventy-seven articles abolish slavery forever, declare all men free and French and equal before the law, make Catholicism the sole religion, bind labourers to plantations under a regime of compulsory work, and name Louverture governor for life with the right to choose his successor. Napoleon took it as a declaration of independence and sent an army the next year.
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