Elena Striano
March 13, 2023
HIST&127
The Haitian Constitution of 1801
The 1801 Haitian Constitution was largely written by Alexan dre Petition, who ruled the Republic covering the south and west portions of Haiti. Their Constitution had over 70 mandates set in place for their people including the guarantees of freedom and individual security. Making it so no one could be arrested unless a formally expressed mandate, issued from a functionary to whom the law grants the right to order arrest and detention in a publicly designated location. Some may ask how this could possibly be revolutionary? However, keeping details in mind their Constitution was groundbreaking for its time.
Some may be shocked to learn that slavery was not outlawed by the
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The revolution on its own impacted history and countries around the world. One of the most notable global effects of the Haitian Revolution was the impact it had on the French economy. It put an end to Napoleon's plans to establish a French empire in the Western Hemisphere and may have influenced France's decision to sell its assets in North America to the United States more commonly known as the Louisiana Purchase, which allowed slavery to spread there. [4] The constitution gave a way to remove any governor who was avoiding election. It also abolished racial job discrimination and slavery, but preserved fermage, leases, and movement restrictions. Estates that were abandoned by their owners during the revolution were kept in trust by the government and run as such. The constitution was drafted on February 4, 1801 by Toussaint Louverture who convened a Constitutional Assembly. [1] A pure distillation of Toussaint's thoughts was produced by the Assembly, which had three mulattoes and seven whites. Toussaint's opposition to voodoo led to the adoption of Catholicism as the official religion, the enslavement of freed slaves, and the appointment of Toussaint as ruler for life. It is interesting to note that Alexander Hamilton, the most conservative of American revolutionary figures, recommended this last element to Toussaint. [1] The Constitution was created with the guarantee that the people of Haiti would be unalienable, unfettered rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of