Did Haiti’s First and Last King Squander the Revolution or Succeed in Underappreciated Ways?

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 13 March 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Slave, revolutionary, king, Henry Christophe was, in his time, popular and famous the world over. Born to an enslaved mother on the Caribbean island of Grenada, Christophe first fought to overthrow the British in North America, before helping his fellow enslaved Africans in Saint-Domingue, as Haiti was then called, to end slavery. Yet in an incredible twist of fate, Christophe began fighting with Napoleon's forces against the formerly enslaved men and women he had once fought alongside. Later, reuniting with those he had abandoned, he offered to lead them and made himself their king. But it all came to a sudden and tragic end when Christophe—after nine years of his rule as King Henry I—shot himself in the heart, some say with a silver bullet.

But why did Christophe turn his back on Toussaint Louverture and the very revolution with which his name is so indelibly associated? How did it come to pass that Christophe found himself accused of participating in the plot to assassinate Haiti's first ruler, Dessalines? And what caused Haiti to eventually split into two countries, one ruled by Christophe in the north and the other led by President Pétion in the south?

To look at this story, we are joined by Marlene Daut, author of “The First and Last King of Haiti: The Rise and Fall of Henry Christophe,” exploring the-still controversial enigma that he was.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	It's got here with another episode of the History Unplugged podcast.
0:07.2	Henry Christroff in his lifetime was a slave, then a revolutionary, then a king.
0:12.8	He was born to an enslaved mother on the Caribbean island of Granada in the 18th century,
0:16.5	and he first fought to overthrow the British and North America, before helping his fellow
0:20.0	enslaved Africans in
0:21.0	San Doming, as Haiti was called back then, in order to end slavery. But by a twist of fate,
0:25.8	he began fighting with Napoleon's forces against the formerly enslaved men and women he had
0:29.6	once fought alongside. Later, he reunited with those he had abandoned, offering to lend them a hand
0:34.8	and made himself king of Haiti. But it all came to a sudden tragic end
0:39.1	when Christoph, after nine years of ruling his King Henry I, shot himself in the heart.
0:44.4	Christoph was both a revolutionary and a king. These dual roles conflicted with each other when he ruled,
0:49.3	but also complimented each other. He abolished the system of chattel slavery in Haiti, but then
0:53.5	try to create a neo-feudalist
0:55.1	system in the mold of an Enlightenment monarch. Those who admire him today say that he tried but
1:00.0	failed to put Haiti on a pathway to development. The detractors say that he's responsible for Haiti's
1:05.1	current condition. To look at this story, we're joined by Marlena Dow, author of the first and last
1:10.1	king of Haiti, the rise and fall of Henry Christ Dow, author of The First and Last King of Haiti,
1:14.9	The Rise and Fall of Henry Christoph, exploring the still controversial enigma that he was.
1:16.8	Hope you enjoyed this discussion.
1:23.9	And one more thing before we get started with this episode, a quick break for a word from our sponsors.
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