The Black Jacobins
Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution

This title chronicles the successful revolt when brutally treated slaves in Saint Domingo, (what is now Haiti), rose up in rebellion against their French masters during the French Revolution in 1791. Included is a critical portrait of the slave's leader Toussaint L'Ouverture.

In 1791, inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution, the slaves of San Domingo rose in revolt. Despite invasion by a series of British, Spanish and Napoleonic armies, their twelve-year struggle led to the creation of Haiti, the first independent black republic outside Africa. Only three years later, the British and Americans ended the Atlantic slave trade. In this example of vivid, committed and empathetic historical analysis, C.L.R. James illuminates these epoch-making events. He explores the appalling economic realities of the Caribbean economy, the roots of the world's only successful slave revolt and the utterly extraordinary former slave - Toussaint L'Overture -who led them. Explicitly written as part of the fight to end colonialism in Africa, "The Black Jacobins" puts the slaves themselves centre stage, boldly forging their own destiny against nearly impossible odds. It remains one of the essential texts for understanding the Caribbean - and the region's inextricable links with Europe, Africa and the Americas.

The property
the owners
parliament and property
the San Domingo masses begin
and the Paris masses complete
the rise of Toussaint
the Mulattoes try and fail
the white slave-owners again
the expulsion of the British
Toussaint seizes the power
the black consul
the bourgeoisie prepares to restore slavery
the War of Independence.