Toussaint dialogue with Léger Félicité Sonthonax (1797)

In 1797 Toussaint Louverture, as General in chief of the French forces in Saint-Domingue, sent this report to the Directory, which was then in charge of France. In dialogue form he recounts his conversation with Léger Félicité Sonthonax, the head of the French commission to the island. Since his arrival in 1792, Sonthonax had been a strong opponent of slavery (which he had banned in 1793), a supporter of the black and mulatto forces, and a fierce enemy of the white colonists. He had been forced to go back to France for an inquest into his actions on the island, but cleared of all charges and returned to Saint-Domingue. It was Sonthonax who named Toussaint to his position as head of the army. In August 1797, shortly after the events in this report, he was expelled from Saint-Domingue by Toussaint.

Aux Cayes was the scene of rioting the previous year that had resulted in the death of many white colonists.

Source: Extrait du rapport addressé au Directoire executif par le citoyen Toussaint Louverture, general en chef des Forces de la République francaise a Saint-Domingue. (1797) Chez P. Roux, imprimeur. Cap-français, n.d. [1797].

Translated by Mitch Abidor marxists.org CopyLeft: Creative Commons (Attribute & ShareAlike) marxists.org 2004.