Sonthonax Broadside (1793)

On August 29, 1793 the French commissioner Léger-Félicité Sonthonax issued a decree freeing the slaves of the Northern province of Saint-Domingue, followed two weeks later by a similar decree by his fellow-commissioner Polverel for the rest of the colony. This historic decree infuriated the whites of the colony, as well as some of the mixed-blood population and in order to defend himself, Sonthonax had the following printed as a broadside that was posted throughout the island.

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

Reference

 * Coopération interuniveritaire Haïti-Grenoble-Chambéry: Proclamation de Sonthonax du 29 Août 1793 - French text of the proclamation abolishing slavery.