Haiti's Bois Caïman Ceremony: Myth, Memory, and Revolutionary Fire

The Kingdom of Henry Christophe: Haiti's Northern Monarch

In this episode of The Story of Haiti, we explore the fascinating reign of Henry Christophe, the self-proclaimed King of northern Haiti from 1811 to 1820. From his early life as a slave on Grenada to his rise as a key revolutionary general under Toussaint Louverture and Dessalines, Christophe's ambition led him to build a monarchy complete with a titled nobility, an elaborate court, and the colossal Citadelle Laferrière—a fortress that still stands as a symbol of Haitian independence. We delve into his Code Henry, which enforced harsh labor policies on the rural majority, the moun andeyò, and his controversial feud with Alexandre Pétion, who ruled the south as a republic. We also examine Christophe's tragic end, his suicide amid a rebellion, and the legacy of his kingdom. Along the way, we discuss the role of Vodou, the influence of European monarchies, and the economic challenges that shaped his rule. Join Lucas and Luna as they uncover the story of Haiti's only king, a figure of both grandeur and tyranny. #HenryChristophe #Haiti #KingdomOfHaiti #CitadelleLaferrière #CodeHenry #MounAndeyò #Vodou #AlexandrePétion #CapHaïtien #SansSouciPalace #HaitianRevolution #Monarchy #CaribbeanHistory #History #FexingoHistory #HaitianHistory #ToussaintLouverture #Dessalines Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Défilée Dédée Bazile: Haiti's Goddess of Dignity

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the life and legend of Défilée Dédée Bazile, the market woman who retrieved and buried Dessalines' mutilated body after his assassination in 1806. Known as 'Défilée la Folle' or 'Défilée la Reine,' she embodies the role of moun andeyò, the rural majority, in Haitian memory. We trace her journey from slave to freedom, her presence at the Battle of Vertières, and how she became a symbol of dignity in the face of imperial betrayal. The episode also unpacks the 1806 assassination plot led by Pétion and Christophe, the fragmentation of Haiti after Dessalines' death, and the subsequent civil war. Défilée's story challenges elite narratives and centers the everyday heroism of Haitian women. We discuss the lakou system, Vodou symbolism, and how Défilée was later honored on banknotes and in statues. A meditation on who gets remembered and why. #DéfiléeDédéeBazile #HaitianRevolution #JeanJacquesDessalines #mounandeyò #lakou #Vertières #Haïti #1806Assassination #Vodou #CaribbeanHistory #WomenInHistory #FexingoHistory #History #BlackHistory #HaitianHistory #Empire #CitadelleLaferrière #OgouFeray Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Marie-Claire Heureuse Félixité: Haiti's First Empress

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the life of Marie-Claire Heureuse Félixité, the first Empress of Haiti and wife of Jean-Jacques Dessalines. They discuss her role in the revolution, her humanitarian efforts during the 1804 massacre, her controversial legacy in modern Haiti, and her eventual fall from grace after Dessalines's assassination. The episode also covers the 1805 Imperial Constitution's provisions regarding women, and how Marie-Claire's story challenges traditional narratives of the Haitian Revolution. #MarieClaireHeureuseFélixité #Dessalines #HaitianRevolution #Empress #1805Constitution #JacquesI #PortauPrince #Marchand #1804Massacre #Haiti #CaribbeanHistory #WomenInHistory #Humanitarian #Legacy #Revolution #History #FexingoHistory #HaitianHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

The 1811 Siege of Santo Domingo: Haiti's War Against the Spanish

In the midst of Haiti's civil war between King Henry Christophe and President Alexandre Pétion, a forgotten front opened in the east. In 1811, Christophe's troops laid siege to the Spanish-held city of Santo Domingo, hoping to reclaim the eastern two-thirds of Hispaniola for a unified black state. But the Spanish governor, with a motley garrison of creole militia, Canary Islanders, and former French soldiers, held out behind crumbling walls. Lucas and Luna revisit this nearly erased episode—the siege itself, the role of Haitian maroons who crossed into Spanish territory, and the political calculus that made Christophe abandon the campaign. They also explore the irony of black soldiers besieging a city where freedmen had served in Spanish militias for centuries, and how this failure set the stage for Boyer's 1822 unification. #HaitianHistory #CaribbeanHistory #SantoDomingo #HenryChristophe #Hispaniola #SpanishColonial #SiegeOfSantoDomingo1811 #HaitiDominicanRepublic #Maroons #AlexandrePétion #BlackRepublic #MilitaryHistory #19thCentury #ForgottenWars #Independence #AtlanticWorld #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Sanité Bélair: The Woman Who Led Haiti's Guerrilla War

In 1802, as Napoleon's expeditionary force tried to re-enslave Saint-Domingue, one woman stood out in the mountains of L'Artibonite. Sanité Bélair was a free woman of color who became a lieutenant in Toussaint Louverture's army, leading guerrilla bands alongside her husband Charles Bélair. She was captured, condemned, and executed in March 1802, but her story reveals how women fought, commanded, and died for Haitian independence. This episode pieces together her life from the few surviving records — her rank, her capture, her refusal to betray, and the execution scene where she asked her husband to die bravely. It also explores the broader role of women in Haiti's revolutionary armies: as soldiers, spies, nurses, and bearers of supplies, often erased from official history. We look at how the French described her, how Haitian oral tradition remembers her, and what her story tells us about the promise and limits of revolutionary gender roles. #SanitéBélair #HaitianRevolution #WomenInHistory #CharlesBélair #LArtibonite #ToussaintLouverture #Napoleon #Leclerc #WomenSoldiers #Haiti #SaintDomingue #1802 #CaribbeanHistory #GuerrillaWar #HistoryOfResistance #FexingoHistory #WomenWarriors #OralTradition Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]