Remembering Toussaint Louverture

    Martin Luther king Jr. is remembered for having courage, being tough, and standing up for African American rights. Toussaint L'Ouverture should be remembered like King because they had similar qualities as a leader. Louverture was a military commander and the ruler of Saint Dominique, but his passion for liberating slaves is what he should be remembered for most. 
   It is important to remember Toussaint as a liberator of slaves because the majority of his actions revolved around it. He joined the slaved revolt in 1797 and helped lead it to success. Later, he stops his troops from revolting because Robespierre abolished slavery. He writes a letter French Directory and says " We have known how to confront danger to our liberty, and we will know how to confront death to preserve it." (Doc B) This is is a threat to France; it says how if the French try to force slavery upon Saint Domingue, they wont go down without a fight. Further proving Louverture is a liberator of slaves, he signs the Saint Domingue constitution in 1801 which states "There cannot exist slaves in this         territory, servitude is therefore forever abolished. All men are born, live and die free and french" (Doc C) This article gets straight to the point, it clearly states that slavery will never exist in Saint Domingue. Toussaint Louverture should be remembered as a liberator of slaves because all of his future actions revolve around his passion for gaining rights for slaves.
   Another way to look back on Louverture is as a military commander. Before he became a military commander he served as a doctor along with commanding a small detachment of slaves. Later in 1792, he became a military commander and taught his troops both guerrilla tactics and the European style of war. This was an intelligent idea because when the French came over, they were used to fighting in cities (shoulder to shoulder). Guerrilla style is blending in with the surroundings; it's a quick attack and quick retreat. The French would be caught off guard, giving the people of Saint Domingue an advantage. Also, when the French came to the port city of Semana to enslave people, he burnt down all the plantations. The French arrived to the land, and it looked less appealing to invade because there was no resources; the French had to move to the center of the island, where the people of Saint Domingue were ready to attack. This just shows how smart he was as a military leader. On October 29,1801 a revolt happened on a northern plain and white plantation owners were murdered. This happened because the newly freed slaves were sick of doing the same work as before (working in feilds) , even though they were considered free and not slaves. His nephew Hyacinthe Morse, led this revolt; Toussaint was enraged and later sentenced him to death. He made the followers of the revolt to commit suicide to scare others on Saint Domingue. Toussaint's superior knowledge, his humanity, generosity, and courage, made him gain the confidence if whom he had under his command (Doc F). It was no secret that Toussaint Louverture was a strategic and strong military leader, therefore he should be remembered as one.
   Aside from liberating slaves and being a military leader, Toussaint Louverture was also a ruler of Saint Dominique. He wasn't known as the best ruler, but he truly cared about his people and the laws they were required to follow. In the Saint Domingue constitution it states "He is entrusted in the direction thereof for the remainder of his glorious life" (Doc C). This statement means Louverture has the power to rule the rest of his life. He could of easily turned Saint Domingue into a dictatorship but the people trusted him, and they knew he would do the best for them. These people needed a strict leader as well. Once the slaves gained rights and became free he knew they would be less motivated to work on the plantations. Due to this, he made strict laws to enforce labor in the fields. He wrote "Any individual...tending to incite sedition [actions against the authority of nation] shall be brought before a court martial [military court] and be punished in conformity with the law" (Doc D). Toussaint is saying that if a plantation worker choose to not work or go to a different plantation, they would be sent to jail. He also writes "Any manger or driver of a plantation upon which a foreign cultivator [field worker of another plantation] shall have taken refuge shall denounce him to the captain or commander of the section within 24 hours under penalty of one week in prison"(Doc D).  If a plantation owner knew there was workers from other farms on his property and did not report them within 24 hours, he would be sent to jail for a week. Although these laws were strict, Saint Domingue needed a ruler like Louverture to keep the people in line, so it is important to remember Louverture as a trusted leader.
  Toussaint Louverture had a very eventful life with all the accomplishments he made, but he should mostly be remembered as a liberator of slaves. He was a great ruler and a smart military leader, but all the actions he made was traced back to freeing slaves. He put in all his effort to ensure slavery would be abolished forever for the people of Saint Domingue. He even threatened the French Directory and said his troops would fight to the death if it meant slavery would not be reinstated. He proved that him and his actions should be respected. He was unfortunately departed to France and died there. But, he would have died happy knowing that the Saint Dominicans gained their independence. Therefore, we should Toussaint Louverture as a liberator of slaves.

Doc B: Toussaint Louverture “Letter to the French Directory, November 1797.”
Doc C: The Saint Domingue Constitution. Signed but Toussaint Louverture in July 1801.
Doc D: Toussaint Louverture "Proclamation, 25 November 1801."
Doc F:  William Wells Brown, “A Description of Toussaint Louverture,” from The Black Man, His Antecedents, His Genius, and His Achievements, 2nd edition, 1863. Engraving of Toussaint Louverture, 1802.