Henri Christophe

Who was Henri Christophe?

Henri Christophe was a former slave and key leader in the Haitian Revolution, which succeeded in gaining independence from France in 1804. In 1805 he took part under Jean-Jacques Dessalines in the invasion of Santo Domingo against French forces, and was documented as killing hundreds of Dominicans, including prisoners.

After Dessalines was assassinated, Christophe retreated to the Plaine-du-Nord and created a separate government. On 17 February 1807, he was elected President of the State of Haiti, as he named that area. Alexandre Pétion was elected president in the South. On 26 March 1811, Christophe created a kingdom in the North and had himself proclaimed Henry I, King of Haïti. He also created a nobility and named his legitimate son Jacques-Victor Henry as prince and heir.

He is known for constructing the Citadelle Laferrière, the Sans-Souci Palace, and numerous other palaces. Under his policies of corvee, or forced labor, the Kingdom earned revenues from agricultural production, primarily the commodity of sugar, but the people resented the system.