Modeling Revolutions Project: French Revolution vs. Haitian Revolution

Incubation Stage: Before the French Revolution, there were signs of struggle and

disunity between the peasants and the French monarchy. With the Seven Years’ War,

the French monarchy was in an inescapable debt. However, this did not affect the

monarchy; they lived as extravagantly as before, while the peasants were being taxed

even more heavily. With bread prices were raising as well, famine was common.

However, within the Estates General, there was lots of tension. The first estate, the

clergy, and the second, the nobility, would always outvote the third estate, everyone

else, with 2/3 of the vote. This was not fair because the nobility and the clergy only

consisted of 4% of the population. Before the Haitian Revolution, many white planters

wanted independence from Revolutionary France, free persons of color, attracted to the

concept of equality embedded in the doctrine of The Rights of Man, were struggling for

full rights of citizenship, slaves, hearing the talk of human equality, & oppressed by

inhuman conditions, revolted for improved conditions. Famine was also common,

overfishing the coast left the people wanting more than just food. The similarities

included the famine that struck both the people of Paris as well as the coasts of Haiti.

The Haitian revolution was caused by the French, and they wanted equality as well.

Symptomatic Stage: Before the French Revolution, the third estate was excluded

from the estates general, and that is what set off the Constitution of 1791. They had

gathered at a tennis court and aspired to not leave without a constitution. It called for a

constitutional monarchy. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen also called

from equality among all men. The March of the Women was one example of the

impeding Revolution making headway. They women of Paris stormed the palace of

Versailles and captured the king and queen of France, Marie Antoinette, and King Louis

XVI. Before the Haitian Revolution, massive slave uprisings erupted in the French

Colony of Saint Domingue. The rebellion was ignited by a voodoo service organized by

Boukman. The Mackandal rebellion of 1754 started with a slave, Mackandal,

knowledgeable of poison, who organized a plot to poison the slaveholders, and caused

about 6,000 deaths. Bands of runaway slaves, known as maroons (marrons),

entrenched themselves in mountains and forests, from which they bothered white-

owned plantations to secure provisions and weaponry and to take revenge. As their

numbers grew, these bands began to carry out hit-and-run attacks throughout the

colony. This is similar in that they were many uprisings in both the revolutions. Maroons

would kill plantation owners while the peasants of Paris would slowly start picking off

people starting with the March of the women and Bastille Day.

Crisis Stage: The French revolution started with Bastille Day, when thousands of

people stormed the prison of Bastille to acquire the weapons necessary to fight the

revolution. Then there was Robespierre and his Reign of Terror, where more than

40,000 people died in the guillotine; one of them being King Louis XVI. The killing of

Louis XVI signaled the end of the French monarchy and the beginning of the French

Republic. The Haitian Revolution started with a group of slaves gather at Bois-Caïman

in the northern part of the colony in 1791. They gathered to attempt to overthrow French

rule. Out of the hundreds of rebellions that occurred throughout the Haitian Revolution,

only the St. Domingue slave revolt which began in 1791 was successful in achieving

permanent independence under a new nation. In 1803, The Battle of Vertières occurred.

This is the last victory of the Haitians over the French. Even after the deportation of

Toussaint Louverture, the leader of the Haitian Revolution, in 1802, his second in

command was still able to defeat the French at their last battle. What is similar is that

the Haitian revolution started out with a gathering at Bois- Caiman, and the French

revolution started out with the Tennis court oath gathering. There were also many

rebellions in which a few succeeded such as the Domingue slave revolt, Bastille Day,

and the March of the Women.

Convalescence: The end of the French Revolution was signaled by the execution of

Robespierre. Once he was ended so what the age of the guillotine and the Reign of

Terror. With this, France was on its way to restoration. The directory, a new body of

government was formed and Napoleon Bonaparte rose to power. He established a

Napoleonic code, which called for equality of all men After 13 years of revolution,

France was removed from the island and the Haitian revolution ended and

independence declared on January 1, 1804. However, the country was in ruins, the

people struggling for survival. The black slaves had gained freedom and were able to

establish a republic. The revolution also brought a constitution granting rights and

citizenship to all people of Saint Dominique. Similarities include a republic that was

established as well was the freedom and equality granted to the people. Both places

were now based on a republic and constitution.