10 powerful times enslaved Africans rebelled to show that slavery was not a choice

The Haitian Revolution, 1791

The Haitian Revolution is one of the most well known and successful slave revolts. The slave rebellion led to the founding of the first independent, free Black state. The main insurrection started in the valuable French colony of Saint-Domingue 1791.

Historians aptly explain, “Inspired in part by the egalitarian philosophy of the French Revolution, black slaves launched an organized rebellion, killing thousands of whites and burning sugar plantations en route to gaining control of the northern regions of Saint-Domingue. The unrest continued until February 1794 when the French government officially abolished slavery in all its territories.”

The celebrated rebel general, Toussaint Louverture, then joined forces with French Republicans and established himself as governor of the island by 1801. Still, the French tried to reinstate slavery when Napoleon Bonaparte’s imperial forces captured Louverture in 1802.

Former slaves took up arms once again, this time led by Jean-Jacques Dessalines, in 1803. They defeated French forces at the Battle of Vertières. Former slaves declared their independence and established the island as the new republic of Haiti in 1804. What a success! What a story of victory of resisting and fighting against slavery. The Haitian revolution went on to inspire countless other revolts throughout the United States and the Caribbean.