Marie-Jeanne Lamartiniére

Who is Marie-Jeanne Lamartiniére?

Marie-Jeanne Lamartiniére, known in history only as Marie-Jeanne, was a Haitian soldier. She served in the Haitian army during the Haitian Revolution.

She served at the Battle of Crête-à-Pierrot in 1802. She fought in male uniform and made a great impression with her beauty, fearlessness and courage, and is said to have boosted the morale of her male colleagues with her bravery. Her life after the independence is unknown. An old story says that she, for a time, was involved in a relationship with emperor Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who admired her courage, and that she later married the officer Larose. This is unconfirmed but comes from a contemporary source, related by one of the other soldiers at Crête-à-Pierrot, and is considered trustworthy.

Most women participating as soldiers during the revolution remain anonymous, and only a few, of which Lamartiniere is one, have been known in history. Other contemporary examples of women in the Haitian army are Victoria Montou and Sanité Belair.