Henri Christophe
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Henri I | |
| King Henri I of Haiti | |
 King Henri I |
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| Reign | 28 March 1811 – 8 October 1820 |
|---|---|
| Coronation | 2 June 1811 |
| Full name | Henri Christophe |
| Born | October 6, 1767 |
| Birthplace | St Kitts |
| Died | October 8, 1820 |
| Place of death | Cap-Haïtien, Haiti |
| Predecessor | Jacques I (as Emperor of Haiti) |
| Successor | Monarchy Abolished Jean Pierre Boyer (as President of Haiti) |
Henri Christophe (October 6, 1767 – October 8, 1820) was a career officer and general in the Haïtian Army. He became President of the State of Haiti on February 17, 1807. He was proclaimed King of Haïti on March 26, 1811. He committed suicide on October 8, 1820.
Born in St Kitts[1], Christophe was brought to Saint Domingue as a slave. He worked in a hotel restaurant, and it is said that he obtained his freedom. In 1779 he may have served with the French Forces in the American Revolution in the Chasseurs-Volontaires de Saint-Dominigue, a regiment composed of Gens de couleur at the Siege of Savannah as a drummer boy.
Christophe distinguished himself in the Haïtian Revolution of 1791, eventually rising to the rank of general in 1802. In 1806 Henri Christophe was aware of a plot to kill Jean Jacques Dessalines, seeing an opportunity to seize power he did not warn Dessalines. The plot was put in motion by Alexandre Petion who knew that it would be the only way for him to ever attain power because of his weak stature among the indigenous forces. After the assassination Henri Christophe was elected president but with no real powers. Henri feeling insulted retreated to the north and started a kingdom. Henri had suspected that he too would be next to be assassinated and this was the reason he was given a title with no powers.
In 1807 Henri became President of "the state of Haïti" président et généralissime des forces de terre et de mer de l'État d'Haïti (French: ''President and Generalissimo of the armies of land and sea of the State of Haïti) [1], with Pétion becoming President of the "republic of Haïti" in the south. In 1811 Henri made the northern state of Haïti a kingdom, and proclaimed himself King. An edict of 1 April 1811 gives his full title as
Henri, par la grâce de Dieu et la Loi constitutionelle de l'État Roi d'Haïti, Souverain des Îles de la Tortue, Gonâve, et autres îles adjacentes, Destructeur de la tyrannie, Régénérateur et bienfaiteur de la nation haïtienne, Créateur de ses institutiones morales, politiques et guerrières, Premier monarque couronné du Nouveau-Monde, Défenseur de la foi, Fondateur de l'ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Henri.
Henry, by the grace of God and constitutional law, King of the State of Haiti, Sovereign of Tortuga, Gonâve, and other adjacent islands, Destroyer of tyranny, Regenerator and Benefactor of the Haïtian nation, Creator of her moral, political, and martial institutions, First crowned monarch of the New World, Defender of the faith, Founder of the Royal Military Order of Saint Henry.
His only surviving son, Jacques-Victor Henry, was made heir apparent with the title Prince Royal of Haiti. Even in documents written in French the king's name was usually spelled in English.
Christophe built for himself 6 châteaux, 8 palaces and the massive Citadelle Laferrière, still considered one of the wonders of the age. Nine years later, at the end of his monarchy the original 87 nobles had grown to number 134 (Cheesman page 10) [1].
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[edit] Nobility and Heraldry
One of his first acts as king was to erect a Haïtian Peerage, of creating 4 princes, 7 dukes, 22 counts, 40 barons and 14 chevaliers. He also founded a College of Arms to provide armorial bearings to the newly ennobled.
[edit] End of Reign
Despite his efforts to promote education and establish a legal system, the Code Henri, King Henri was an unpopular autocratic monarch, whose realm was in a constant state of conflict with the south. Toward the end of his reign, public sentiment was sharply against what was perceived to be his feudal policies, intended to develop the country. Ill and infirm, although only fifty three, King Henri decided to shoot himself with a silver bullet rather than face the possibility of a coup. He was buried within the Citadelle Laferriere.
Henri Christophe was the subject of La Tragédie du Roi Christophe, a 1963 play written by Martinican writer Aimé Césaire. He is also featured prominently in the novel El Reino de Este Mundo (The Kingdom Of This World) by Alejo Carpentier.
Pierre Nord Alexis, President of Haiti from 1902-1908, was his grandson.
The Boy Scouts Troupe Henri Christophe, associated with College Notre Dame Du Perpetuel Secours in Cap-Haitien, Haiti, is named after him.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Cheesman, Clive (2007). The Armorial of Haiti. London: The College of Arms. ISBN 9780950698021.
Henry Christophe plays a prominent role in the novels Drums of Destiny written by Peter Bourne and published by G.P. Putnam's Sons in New York in 1946 in a book club distribution and also in The Kingdom of This World by Alejo Carpentier, first published in Spanish in 1949 in Mexico DF as _El Reino de Este Mundo_.
[edit] External links
- Haitian American Historical Society Savannah Monument Project
- Marvin T. Jones's blog "Photographing Haiti's Citadelle Henry"
- Institut de la Maison Imperiale d'Haiti
| Preceded by Jacques I Emperor of Haïti |
President of the State of Haïti 1807-1811 King of Haïti 1811-1820 |
Succeeded by Jean Pierre Boyer President of Haïti |
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