On November 18, 1803, Jean-Jacques Dessalines ordered the capture of Fort Vertières, located on a hill outside the town of Cap-Français. François Capois, known as Capois-la-Mort (Capois the Death), commanded a demi-brigade that had been partially decimated by cannon fire from the fort. He launched another assault, but his men were again cut down at the foot of the hill by grapeshot. Capois ran to find reinforcements, then, for the third time, he launched his forces against the fort in vain, leaving many dead once more. During the fourth assault, he urged his men to follow him, shouting, "Forward! Forward!" While leading his men, his horse was struck by a cannonball; he fell, but Capois drew his sword, got up, and ran back to the head of his Black soldiers, still shouting, "Forward! Forward!" A cannonball blew off his feathered cap. A personal messenger from Rochambeau mounted his horse and rode to Capois-la-Mort. In a loud voice, he cried out, "General Rochambeau sends his admiration to the general who has just covered himself in so much glory!"Dessalines' Reinforcements
To reinforce the exhausted battalions at Capois-la-Mort, Dessalines sent reinforcements under the command of Generals Gabart, Clervaux, and Jean-Philippe Daut. In the mid-afternoon, Gabart took up position on the Charrier hill with Benjamin Noël. The fighting intensified. By evening, two-thirds of the French defenders were dead or wounded.
Rochambeau's Surrender
The following morning, a French officer, Duveyrier, surrendered to the sentries at Capois and was taken on horseback to the Haitian army headquarters, carrying the following message: "Captain-General Rochambeau offers this horse as a token of admiration for the 'Black Achilles' to replace the one his French army regrets having killed." Negotiations with Dessalines lasted all day. Before nightfall, an agreement was signed. Rochambeau was granted ten days to evacuate Fort Vertières, embark the rest of his army, and leave Saint-Domingue.
The Consequences
The island was officially proclaimed independent from France on January 1, 1804, by the Act of Independence of the Republic of Haiti, read by Dessalines in Gonaïves. Haiti thus became the world's first Black republic. During the Second Restoration, the Kingdom of France did not recognize Haiti's independence from the French Republic. In 1826, King Charles X demanded an indemnity of 150 million gold francs from Haiti in exchange for French recognition of its independence. In 1838, under the July Monarchy, King Louis-Philippe reduced this debt to 90 million francs and fully paid it to France in 1883. Interest payments on the debt incurred as a result of the indemnity ceased only in 1952.
Since its independence, the Haitian nation has commemorated the Battle of Vertières on November 18th, celebrating it as a national holiday.[5] This battle is celebrated not only as an important historical event for the country but also as an emblematic example of the struggle against slavery and colonialism for other countries.[6] The victory prevented France from pursuing its project of a colonial empire linking the Caribbean and North America. Consequently, Napoleon's decision to sell Louisiana to the United States in 1803 is directly related to the loss of Saint-Domingue.
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