Charles Riviere-Hérard

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Charles Rivière-Hérard also known as Charles Hérard Aîné (February 16, 1789 - August 31, 1850) was an officer in the Haïtian Army during that country's war for independence. He was declared President of Haïti on April 4, 1843. He was forced from office by revolutionaries on May 3, 1844.

Charles Hérard Aîné was born at Port-au-Prince on February 16, 1789. Little about his early life is generally known, except that he fought with the revolutionaries against the French, and that during that conflict he was an officer commanding a battalion of black troops. Aîné or Hérard as he came to be known, was chief among the conspirators that ousted President Boyer, during the 1843 Revolution. On December 30 of that same year a Provisional Parliament of Haiti enacted a new Constitution, apparently without Hérard's approval. As a result this soon afterward, General Hérard, who had the loyalty of the army, seized control of the government and declared himself President of Haïti.

Soon after Hérard's rise to power, the eastern half of Haïti, known as Santo Domingo, staged a revolt. On February 27, 1844, rebels occupied the capital city of Santo Domingo and the following day declared the Dominican Republic's independence from Haïti. Hérard responded almost immediately. Fielding an army of 25,000 soldiers on March 10, 1844, he entered the new Dominican Republic with the intent of returning the eastern half of the island to Haïtian rule. He was quickly defeated however, and within a month was forced to retreat with his army back into Haïti. Facing increasing opposition in the government and a rapidly deteriorating political situation within the country, on March 30, 1844 Hérard dissolved the new Constitution and the Parliament.

During Hérard's invasion of the Dominican Republic, an armed revolt began in the countryside. By the end of March 1844, a rebel army composed of peasants and farmers began to muster near the city of Les Cayes. The rebels, known as piquets, were armed with long pikes (from which they derived their name). Gathering under the command of a General Jean-Jacques Acaau, they formed what became known as "L’Armée Souffrante" or the Army of the South. In April of that year, they met and defeated a government army. Although soon after this, their advance on the Haïtian capital was checked at the town of Aquin. This however, did not provide a respite for Hérard. While General Acaau was marching against Port-au-Prince in the south, an armed revolt had begun in the North, fueled by Hérard's opponents in the government. Faced with this crisis, Hérard relinquished the Presidency on May 3, 1844. He went into exile on June 2, 1844, later arriving in Jamaica where he died on August 31, 1850.

Preceded by: Jean-Pierre Boyer President of Haïti

President of Haïti 1843-1844

Succeeded by: Philippe Guerrier President of Haïti