The French and Haitian Revolutions

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that the Enlightenment greatly influenced the French and Haitian revolutions, mostly due to the rights of man as expressed in the "Declaration" and the philosophical ideals of such men as Rousseau, Diderot and Montesquieu. The author points out that the French Revolution influenced the Haitian revolt via its appeal to the white lower classes, the mulattos and freed blacks who resented the social barriers of legal discrimination within Haiti. The paper suggests that the Enlightenment not only brought about new political and social systems within France and Haiti but also caused massive unrest and much trouble for both countries.

Table of Contents
Introduction
The Enlightenment
The French Revolution
The Haitian Revolution

From the Paper:

"While all of this revolt was happening in France, the small Caribbean colony of Haiti was experiencing similar turmoil. The Haitian Revolution of 1789 to 1804 began as a political struggle among the free peoples of Saint Domingue, a French colony on the island of Hispaniola. The French Revolution of the same period provided the impetus for class and racial hatreds to come about on the island. Each of the colony's social classes, being the wealthy planters and merchants, and the lower white classes, seized the chance to address their grievances and bring about social chaos and revolt."

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