Republic of Haiti | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1806–1820 | |||||||||
 The Republic of Haiti in the southwest of Hispaniola from 1808-1820  Republic of Haiti from 1806-1808 | |||||||||
| Capital | Port-au-Prince | ||||||||
| Common languages | French language,Haitian Creole | ||||||||
| Religion | Roman Catholicism | ||||||||
| Demonym | Haitian | ||||||||
| Government | Unitarypresidentialrepublic
| ||||||||
| President | |||||||||
• 1807–1818 | Alexandre Pétion | ||||||||
• 1818–1820 | Jean-Pierre Boyer | ||||||||
| Legislature | Parliament | ||||||||
• Upper Chamber | Senate | ||||||||
• Lower Chamber | Chamber of Deputies | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Assassination of EmperorJacques I | 17 October 1806 | ||||||||
• Reunification of North and South Haiti | 18 October 1820 | ||||||||
| Currency | Haitian gourde | ||||||||
| ISO 3166 code | HT | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | Haiti | ||||||||
The firstRepublic of Haiti (French:République d'Haïti;Haitian Creole:Repiblik d Ayiti) controlled the southern portions ofHaiti from 1806 until 1820. The republic, commonly referred to asSouth Haiti during its existence, was created on 17 October 1806, following the assassination of EmperorJacques I and the overthrow of theFirst Empire of Haiti. The southern Republic of Haiti was ruled by GeneralAlexandre Pétion, afree person of color, asPresident from 9 March 1807[1] until his death on 29 March 1818. He was succeeded byJean-Pierre Boyer.
While the Republic of Haiti had control in the south,Henri Christophe ruled over the north of the country as President of theState of Haiti until 1811 when he proclaimed theKingdom of Haiti with himself as King Henri I. Following King Henri's death in 1820, Haiti was unified as asingle republican state under Boyer.
Initially a supporter of democracy, Pétion modified the terms of the presidency in theRevision of the Haitian Constitution of 1806 on 2 June 1816, making the post of president a position forlife, with the president having the power to appoint his successor.[2] Furthermore, he found the constraints imposed on him by theSenate onerous and suspended the legislature in 1818.[3]
Pétion named GeneralJean-Pierre Boyer as his successor; the Senate approved his choice. Boyer took control in 1818 following the death of Pétion fromyellow fever. After Henri I andhis son died in 1820, Boyer reunited the two parts of the country in 1820;[4] he went on tounify the entire island of Hispaniola under his rule in 1822, and presided over the unifiedRepublic of Haiti until his overthrow in 1843.[5]
Pétion seized commercial plantations from the rich gentry. He had the land redistributed to his supporters and the peasantry, earning him the nicknamePapa Bon-Cœur ("good-hearted father"). The land seizures and changes in agriculture reduced the production of commodities for the export economy. Most of the population became full subsistence farmers, and exports and state revenue declined sharply, making survival difficult for the new state.[6]
Pétion gave sanctuary to the independence leaderSimón Bolívar in 1815 and provided him with material and infantry support. This vital aid played a defining role inBolivar's military career, and ensured his success in thecampaign to liberate the countries of what would make upGran Colombia.[7]
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