Full name: Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution

Author: Laurent Dubois Year: 2004 Rank: Rating: Original Rating: Pop Rating: Genres/categories: History, Non Fiction Purchase/reserch links: LibraryThing Goodreads Amazon ISBNs: 9780674018266 0674018265

The first and only successful slave revolution in the Americas began in 1791 when thousands of brutally exploited slaves rose up against their masters on Saint-Domingue, the most profitable colony in the eighteenth-century Atlantic world. Within a few years, the slave insurgents forced the French administrators of the colony to emancipate them, a decision ratified by revolutionary Paris in 1794. This victory was a stunning challenge to the order of master/slave relations throughout the Americas, including the southern United States, reinforcing the most fervent hopes of slaves and the worst fears of masters. But, peace eluded Saint-Domingue as British and Spanish forces attacked the colony. A charismatic ex-slave named Toussaint Louverture came to France's aid, raising armies of others like himself and defeating the invaders. Ultimately Napoleon, fearing the enormous political power of Toussaint, sent a massive mission to crush him and subjugate the ex-slaves. After many battles, a decisive victory over the French secured the birth of Haiti and the permanent abolition of slavery from the land. The independence of Haiti reshaped the Atlantic world by leading to the French sale of Louisiana to the United States and the expansion of the Cuban sugar economy. Laurent Dubois weaves the stories of slaves, free people of African descent, wealthy whites, and French administrators into an unforgettable tale of insurrection, war, heroism, and victory. He establishes the Haitian Revolution as a foundational moment in the history of democracy and human rights. Similar books: The Black Jacobins by C. L. R. James Haiti by Laurent Dubois Dead Wake by Erik Larson One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson Six Frigates by Ian W. Toll 102 Minutes by Jim Dwyer The History of Jihad by Robert Spencer Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink The Oregon Trail by Rinker Buck The History of Surfing by Matt Warshaw Washington's Immortals by Patrick K. O'Donnell American Gun by Chris Kyle No Way Out by Mitch Weiss Swords and Swordsmen by Mike Loades Dress in Anglo-Saxon England by Gale R. Owen-Crocker Season of the Witch by David Talbot Almost a Miracle by John Ferling War Bonds by Cindy Hval Chancellorsville by Stephen W. Sears Nelson's Navy by Brian Lavery