Saint-Domingue: Uprising and Its Long Aftermath
On the night of August 22–23, 1791, fires lit the northern plain of Saint-Domingue. Enslaved people had begun a major uprising against the French colony’s plantation system. The struggle that followed would last more than a decade, reshape the Caribbean, and lead to the creation of Haiti. Its effects would reach far beyond the island and long beyond the final battles.
A wealthy colony built on slavery
Saint-Domingue occupied the western part of Hispaniola, a Caribbean island it shared with the Spanish colony of Santo Domingo. Today, Haiti and the Dominican Republic occupy the island. In 1791, Saint-Domingue was one of France’s most profitable colonies. Its plantations produced sugar, coffee, and other goods for sale overseas.
That wealth depended on the forced labor of hundreds of thousands of enslaved Africans and their descendants. Many had been captured in Africa and transported across the Atlantic in the slave trade. On plantations, they faced exhausting work, harsh punishment, and dangerous conditions. Many died from disease, overwork, or violence. Plantation owners continued to bring in enslaved people from Africa to replace those who died.
- plantations:
- Large farms where crops are grown for sale.
- uprising:
- An organized act of resistance against those in power.
- alliances:
- Agreements to work together toward shared goals.
- abolished:
- Officially ended a law or system.
- expedition:
- A group sent on a particular mission, sometimes a military one.
- withdrew:
- Moved away or pulled back from a place.
- compensate:
- To pay someone for a loss.
- aftermath:
- The period and consequences following an important event.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1How did Saint-Domingue’s plantation system produce both wealth and suffering?
- 2How did different groups in Saint-Domingue interpret the promises of the French Revolution?
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About this explanatory article passage for Middle School
“Saint-Domingue: Uprising and Its Long Aftermath” is a explanatory article reading passage about The Haitian Revolution, written for Middle School. It takes about 7 minutes to read (975 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.