elpapis1955

Toussaint L'Ouverture in his own words This book contains letters and proclamations of Toussaint L'Ouverture which date from the very start of the revolution in San Domingue (Haiti) right up to the time of his imprisonment. Toussaint was known to tire out entire teams of staff who worked on producing his correspondence and it wasn't unusual for him to dictate 300 letters in a single day! So this represents just a small selection of the many he would have produced during his career. He has had his fair share of criticism, as some of his actions were to cost him support from his power base and would ultimately lead to his demise at the hands of the French. But from the famous proclamation of 29 August 1793, where Toussaint introduces himself as L'Ouverture in the great cause of "liberty and equality", to letters sent to Bonaparte during this imprisonment in France, one can only be impressed by his intellect, political astuteness, military genius and commitment to the cause of freedom for all. The introduction by the former Haitian president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, provides a summary of the life of Toussaint and attempts to bring into focus the legacy that he left behind. Included in this work is the Haitian Constitution of 1801 as well as letters written by Bonaparte to Toussaint. There is Bonaparte's telling analysis of the events of San Domingue from St Helena where he was in exile. He reflects on the folly of what he did which were against sound politics and resulted in the French losing almost all their holdings in the Americas. Overall this is definitely worth reading especially for those interested in the revolution that was fought to make all free and to understand more about the man who was one of its key architects.

2022-10-29 03:18