Discussing the Haitian Revolution

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How do different sources discuss the religious ritual that was the spark for the Haitian revolution?

Dumsele talks about the ritual in an almost appreciative tone and he talks about the ritual in a way that is perhaps, the most believing of the sources when he talks about the ritual. He discusses the lightning almost as if it were an omen for the explosive revolution that took place, and he also seems to mythologize the revolution by not speaking to any of the people who participated. By not talking to anyone who was there, it is easier to make them seem like they are more heroic. The fact of the matter is that war and revolution is messy, but Dumsele’s rendition makes the revolutionaries seem like avenging angels who rained fury down on the whites on the island. This makes it seem like the war was not as messy as all wars tend to be.

 

Discussing the Haitian Revolution and Disease

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Question: How did disease affect the outcome of the Haitian Revolution?

Answer: Though diseases are only tiny microbes they virtually shape history in many ways. When Napolean took power of France in the early 1800’s and tried to reinstate a form a slavery back on the island through his brother Leclerc, yellow fever virtually killed off much of the French army including Leclerc himself. Though the Haitians had greater numbers and used guerilla war tactics the French still had better weapons and a better-trained army. It was because of the tropical diseases that the French army had no immunity too that the Haitian were able to secure their independence from France.

The disease is even mentioned after the written part of Napolean’s plan for the island on page 178. “Little went as Bonaparte planned, however. The resistance of Louverture and his partisans was fiercer and more successful than the French expected, the war against them dragged on for many months and cost the French significant casualties. Several weeks after writing the following letters, Leclerc died of yellow fever that had taken so many of his troops.”

Because of the massive loss of troops either from disease or warfare Leclerc in his final days even begs Napolean for more troops and reduces itself to more vicious tactics. This is seen in a final letter to Napolean on page 179. “If you wish to be master of Saint-Domingue, you must send me twelve thousand men without wasting a single day….If you cannot send me the troops I have asked for, and by the time I have requested, Saint-Domingue will be forever lost to France.”

In conclusion, the reason was Napolean ultimately failed at taking back power in Haiti was that the Haitians were fierce in their resistance and the huge loss that the French army took from yellow fever. Many of the French soldiers were not immune or even accustomed to tropical diseases like yellow fever compared to native Haitians. Because of this, they became more desperate and vicious, but even then they inevitably had to cut their losses and retreat leaving Haiti to itself.

Historical discussion question on Haitian Revolution

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Question: How did foreign powers influence the Haitian Revolution?

Answer: Foreign powers played a substantial role in the Haitian war. While the French government was the country who owned the colony, this did not prevent other foreign powers from intervening. The Spanish played a role, helping with supplies to rebel slaves. Eventually, they gave uniforms, land, and freedom to rebels. The British also played a role, blocking French naval ships in Europe and invading Haiti with British troops from Jamaica.

These foreign influences are evident in the “Decree of General Liberty” by Léger Félicité Sonthonax. External pressure from both Spain and Britain contributed to this decree. The Spanish were helping the slave rebels and the British were wanted by counterrevolutionaries for an invasion. While not ever directly stating these foreign powers, he says, “we found a horrible division among the whites who, separated by interest and opinion” (111). Representing the French, he stands up to other foreign powers, saying, “never forget that you fought for the French Republic, that of all the whites in the universe, the only ones that are your friends are the Frenchmen of Europe” (112). He continues pointing at the British and Spanish monarchies, saying:

“The French Republic wants all men to be free and equal with no color distinctions. Kings can only be content when they are surrounded by slaves.; they are the ones who sold you to the whites on the African coast; they are the tyrants in Europe who want this vile trade to continue. The republic adopts you among its children; these kings wanted only to load you down with chains or eliminate you” (112).”

In these passages, he takes all the blame away from the French government and puts the blame on foreign powers. He makes a clear contrast between the republic and kings. While it displays the effects of foreign power, it is also an example of the rhetoric used to get people onto the French sides. At this point, Haiti was viewed as an island with competing countries in a power struggle over the colony and not as the independent republic it would soon become.

After the “Decree of General Liberty”, it led to a division among the insurgents. Some joined the French side, while others remained with Spain. These divisions can be seen in the “Insurgent Responses to Emancipation”. In a letter from rebel leader Bramante Lazzary, tries to convince Toussaint Louverture to join the French side and leave the Spain. He equates kings with slavery. He says, “Spanish barbarism and slavery” and “the disgraceful way the Spanish villains treated our brave brother Ogé” (118-119). In his general decree, he says, “The nobility and the Spaniards want us to have only the whites in order to bring us back to the old order. But no, we are French; we are fighting for our freedom; we want to live free or die, that is the motto of all good French republicans” (120). In the above passages, he really emphasizes how the French are superior to the monarchy of the Spanish in their ideal republican government and freedom for all. During this time, Haiti was still a colony where countries competed to wield influence in the country for their own advantages.
 

 

Class Notes 11/13/2017

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Latin American history and culture:

Relief efforts for the hurricane-inflicted devastation on the US Virgin Islands are proceeding slowly, partially hindered by the current political climate. 73% of the islands still lack electricity and plant life is effectively gone. Businesses and homes have sustained enormous damage, and the buildings that survived are often waterlogged and moldy. To this day, the Virgin Islands have lingering effects from colonialism such as old, ruined buildings and poverty.

Class:

  • Both the New and Old worlds contribute to the “Trans-Atlantic Story” of interaction
  • The European Enlightenment affects both sides of the Atlantic in the 18th century
    • John Locke was an important Enlightenment thinker
    • emphasis was placed on reason and observation to obtain information
    • creation of humanism: emphasis on individual natural rights
    • rise in secularism and republicanism/classical liberalism
  • The Bourbon Reforms (1713-1762)
    • Were they full-blown reforms, or simply a series of administrative changes?
    • Initiated by Philip V of Spain (reigned 1700-1746), first king of the new Bourbon dynasty
    • the power of the king in the colonies is always limited by intermediaries
    • inspired by the Enlightenment
    • administrative:
      • power of Criollos is curtailed, more power given to peninsulares
      • selling of offices is prohibited, making it more difficult for Criollos to rise through the ranks and decreasing social mobility
    • economic:
      • tax system is redesigned to be more efficient
      • attempt are made to regulate wages
      • government maintains monopolies on certain goods such as tobacco and gunpowder
      • loosening of trade restrictions (partially attributable to concessions from the Spanish War of Succession) increases Atlantic trade overall
    • social:
      • government exerts more control over the Catholic Church
      • influx of peninsulares
  • Pedro de Ayarza
    • respected Panamanian merchant racially labeled as pardo
    • sued to purchase official “whiteness” and honorific “don” for himself and his sons from 1795 to 1807 after his eldest was denied a university degree due to being pardo
    • fails to get title of “don,” succeeds in receiving “whiteness” for himself and one of his sons with his youngest being denied on account of age
    • this story shows how, in a legal sense, “whiteness” grants social mobility and allows a family to cast off racial stigma, but it is very expensive to obtain

We were unable to talk about Juan Barbarin because we ran out of time.

Definitions:

  • Criollos/Creoles: American-born Spaniards
  • Peninsulares: Iberian-born Spaniards in America
  • Pardo: dark-skinned
  • Bourbon Reforms: a series of reforms (or administrative changes, depending on who you ask) in the Spanish colonies from roughly 1713-1762 performed under the Bourbon dynasty that permanently altered colonial government
  • Age of Revolutions: an era in history in which revolutionary fervor gripped numerous oppressed peoples, causing uprisings in such places as America, France, and Haiti
  • Honor: public reputation
  • Gracias al Sacar: official decree freeing one from the caste system; official recognition of someone’s “whiteness”

Miscellaneous:

  • peer reviews for audio slideshows have been assigned on moodle and are due on Wednesday, after which Professor Holt will give her own feedback
  • we will later study the breakdown of colonial authority by analyzing the Haitian War of Independence
  • Monday will be an in-class discussion on Haitian independence with emphasis on primary source analysis

Links:

The Enlightenment: https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Europe/The-Enlightenment

The Bourbon Reforms: http://historyworldsome.blogspot.com/2013/11/bourbon-reforms-in-latin-america.html

Age of Revolutions: https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Europe/The-age-of-revolution

Latin America in the news

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A team of underwater archeologists believe they have found a cannonball from a Spanish ship called the “San Francisco” that sank off the coast of Japan in 1609.[1] The Spanish merchant vessel was believed to be transporting valuable trading goods from the Philippines to Mexico that sank when a storm drove the boat into reefs off Chiba province.[2] Dr Jun Kimura from Tokai University has been leading a team of marine archeologists who have been searching for the San Francisco in waters off Iwawada in Chiba prefecture.[3] The cannonball was discovered by Ian McCann, an Australian researcher at the University of New England, during a deep dive around 130 feet below the ocean surface.[4] Dr Kimura told the BBC “We were in dark, murky waters, Ian just saw an unusual shape on the sandy bed- he recovered it but then we had to go back to the surface as our air had nearly run out.” The team of archeologists and the experts they consulted were “almost certain” it was a cannonball from the San Francisco because it was like cannonballs found in other Spanish trading ships in the Philippines.[5] However, they will be carrying out a chemical analysis to confirm this.

McCann told the BBC: “A cannonball may not sound like much but it indicates the general vicinity where the vessel went down. It is the only Spanish Manila galleon that has not been plundered by treasure hunters,” he also said the trading vessels “carried fabulously valuable cargo… by today’s value the cargo may have had a value of around $80m.” This project is the first scientific mission to search for the San Francisco shipwreck and its funded by the Japanese government.[6] A piece of timber was also found in the area and believed to be related to the shipwreck and further expeditions have been planned to be conducted in the area in early 2018.[7]

The San Francisco shipwreck was of “historical importance because it impacted the relationship between Spain, the Philippines, Mexico and Japan,” said Dr Kimura. The ship had been carrying goods from the Philippines to Mexico, which were both Spanish colonies at the time. Aboard the ship was the governor of the Philippines Don Rodrigo de Vivero Velasco.[8] Mr Velasco, who survived the ships sinking, detailed the account in a book, writing: “the Ship was getting destroyed in pieces among some cliffs on the head of Japan… all of us survivors were over the riggings and ropes, because the galleon was getting broken piece by piece.” Hundreds of people survived the shipwreck, and were treated well, thanks to Velasco’s good relations with the Japanese.[9] They eventually successfully sailed back to Mexico, with several Japanese representatives, on the first western-style ship ever built in Japan.[10] “They were the first Japanese ever to cross the pacific and the Spanish king highly appreciated what Japan had done for the survivors, so diplomatic exchanges between Japan and Spain started,” said Dr Kimura. This article pertains to our class themes about the linkage and colonization of the New world from the Old. Discovering shipwrecks provide a unique insight into the different cultural and economic relations that were going on at the time. The shipwreck of the San Francisco happened in 1609, as the Spanish empire was rapidly expanding and establishing new trade routes around the world. If the San Francisco ship wreckage was found it would provide a rare glimpse into the colonial economic framework of the time. It was seafaring voyages such as this one that ultimetly shaped and defined the world as we know it today.

 

 

[1] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[2] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[3] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[4] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[5]“San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[6] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[7] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[8] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[9] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

[10] “San Francisco shipwreck: Divers find cannonball clue.” BBC News. November 13, 2017. Accessed November 14, 2017. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41965080.

 

The Aftermath of Hurricane Irma and Maria in the US Virgin Islands

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With all the news about Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico in the wake of this year’s hurricane season, it’s easy to forget about the other US territories in the Carribean. The US Virgin Islands have been apart of the US since 1916 and makeup three islands St. Thomas, St John, and St Croix, all three rely heavily on tourism for their economy. Though they cannot vote in Congress they have sitting Senators and an active Governor and are under Amercian protection and control. In September the islands were hit by both Irma and Maria, Irma quickly decimating St Thomas and St John, Maria coming up from behind taking out St Croix as well and destroying anything that wasn’t damaged with the first round. These islands are not unfamiliar with storms, they are regularly struck by hurricanes but this season was different bringing the strongest storms in recent memory. This story in New York Times examines how the islands are recovering almost two months after the major storms and discusses their road to recovery.

The storm left the islands dark with no power and general infrastructure destroyed. My Nana, a resident of St Croix for more than a decade described the aftermath as “There was not a single leaf left on the island.” This can actually be visibly seen by space with the pictures below. The article states that the Federal Emergency Management Agency still quotes that 73% of the islands still had no power as of last week. Many are simply hoping that the lights will be on by Christmas, assuming their homes were still standing.

Hurricane Irma Turns Caribbean Islands Brown

This a picture of the Islands of St John and St Thomas after Hurricane Irma. St Criox is farther to the south and a few days after this was taken also looked the same as a result of Hurricane Maria.

The article itself talks about places they visited on each island checking their progress since the storm. On St Thomas they talked to a family whose apartment was completely waterlogged and without power since the storm. They tried to keep it clean and functional, but after having a baby that same month the rising mold and unsanitary conditions caused them to leave and abandon their home. The family noted even that many were less fortunate however losing entire walls and furniture being completely blown away. On St John the followed the Caneel Bay Resort who had large portions of its buildings destroyed and even decided to close its doors for the next year to work on repairs. This has caused a layoff of 300 workers who depend on the tourist and hospitality business for their livelihood. The hotel continues to try and provide what little food refrigeration it can to serve residents and emergency workers on the island. In St Croix, they followed a restaurant called Cibone in Frederiksted. They are still checking to see if the building is structurally sound enough for a complete cleanup. It is covered currently by a blue tarp covering a damaged roof like much of the island. Waterlogged houses have become hotbeds for mold and require masks for cleanup work.

The islands themselves have been largely ignored in the larger media because places like Puerto Rico are larger. But the islands still need a lot of help rebuilding power lines and infrastructure. It is currently asking for 7 billion in emergency aid from the federal government, but in the current political climate, it may be tough. These people are Amercian citizens however and often times aren’t remembered to be.

This connects to our class because the islands were once important hotbeds for sugar cane and the slave trade. They evolved with colonialism and still show the ruins and connections today. Often the problems of race and poverty still exist today as disaster strikes.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/us/virgin-islands-hurricanes.html

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=90952