Black Spartacus: The Epic Life of Toussaint Louverture

An engrossing exploration of the turmoil in Saint-Domingue - what was to become Haiti - in the 18th & early 19th century as black slaves struggled for freedom.
There were slave revolts and alliances with nearby Spanish Santo Domingo (a slave owning country), French republicans unsure whether to emancipate slaves or not, and even British forces invited in by the local French slave owners to bolster their position. The whole region was a confused shambles of conflicting interests.
Enter freed slave Toussaint Louverture who fought to free the slaves and against colonial oppression, always advocating equality between black, mixed-race and white inhabitants – to the extent of granting amnesties to white colonists in the face of opposition show more from his fellow republicans.
The book is a bit of a hagiography but can’t disguise the fact that he was a self-serving opportunist at many points. He hung back from the slave revolt at first, swapped sides between Spain and France for advancement, disrespected and undermined colonial administrators sent out from republican France in order to get his own men in place, in fact, he played politics with the revolution, garnering political as well as military power to himself and creating an Assembly to rubber-stamp his constitution. As self-proclaimed governor he took dictatorial control over all aspects of life, taking wealthy plantations for himself or distributing them to favoured cronies, and forcing freed blacks back to the plantations in very harsh conditions which, while not actual slavery – they were paid – were at the very least forced labour.
Of course, Buonaparte and the French couldn’t allow a black man to set himself up as governor of one of their colonies, so sent an invasion force who were certainly planning on restoring slavery as they had done in many other Caribbean colonies. After fighting them to a standstill Toussaint managed to negotiate a truce, but was tricked and imprisoned in France, where poor treatment caused his death in 1803. After his death his remaining forces managed to drive the French from Saint-Domingue, which henceforth became the free nation of Haiti.
This book is a fascinating study, not just of one man who fought for freedom from slavery, but of a whole movement. Recommended. show less

This is a sympathetic and admiring biography of Toussaint Louverture, who established himself as the military and political leader of St Domingue, a French colony of which the black and mixed colour population fought to free itself from slavery. The title of "Black Spartacus" seems apt, because Louverture's story also ended tragically.

Toussaint was a Black man born on as a slave on a plantation. It is highly characteristic of colonial societies and slavery-based economies that such men were denied educational opportunities and systematically excluded from career options that would enable them to develop leadership skills. While Toussaint was freed from slavery before the revolution began and given a role with some responsibilities as a show more coachman (which involved more than just driving the carriage), it is nevertheless very remarkable that he emerged as a leader familiar with contemporary enlightenment thinking, a skilled military officer, a deft politician, and imaginative maker of laws. I find that Hazareesingh's description of the life and activities of the young Toussaint doesn't do enough to explain his personal development and emergence as a leading figure. In all probability, the source material to do so is lacking, and the author did not want to speculate too much. But it is a gap in our understanding.

The life of Toussaint Louverture as the most powerful man in St Domingue and the recognised authority of the colony is much better documented, as a he left a considerable paper trail. Hazareesingh sketches the portrait of a man who was capable of subtle scheming as well as brutal violence, who successfully defended the interests of his colony as long as the game was played within the confines of the Caribbean world, but who was ultimately defeated when the great powers of the day temporarily ceased fighting and the French were able to send a large army in an (ultimately futile) attempt to restore the old order. Though the author refers to Toussaint's fortune and his mistresses (plural) a few times, he describes his subject as a devout, generally virtuous, somewhat unreliable, but overall well-intentioned man. One gets the strong impression that Toussaint's revolutionary insistence on racial equality for all came together with very conservative social and economic views.

The concluding chapters on modern political and artistic attitudes to Toussaint Louverture are not entirely without interest but far too enumerative.

Overall, a very successful and readable biography. show less

I am ashamed to say before reading this book I not heard of Toussaint Louverture; Sudhir Hazareesingh's account of Toussaint's life, works and long shadow has provided the perfect introduction.

This is a detailed account of a fascinating man's life, but his story is complex and I had to read this slowly.

Passionnant travail, très lisible et parfaitement précis. Une figure hors norme et particulièrement digne d'intérêt.

Ottima biografia