Simón Bolívar

Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (July 24, 1783 Caracas, Venezuela – December 17, 1830 Santa Marta, Colombia) South American liberator. Bolívar traveled on December 24, 1815 to Haiti, arriving in the coastal town of Les Cayes on his way from Jamaica were he was expelled.

Simón Bolívar received help from the Haitian goverment under Alexandre Pétion for his military campaigns. Pétion secretly supplied Bolívar with 4,000 muskets, 15,000 pounds of powder, flints, lead and a printing press and asked in return for South America's slaves to be freed. (Heinl p. 158 - See also footnote 430 of The Struggle for the Recognition of Haiti...).

Bolívar left Haiti on April 10, 1816 for Venezuela, but returned in mid September of that year to Les Cayes after lost battles in South America. Resupplied by Pétion he sailed again from Haiti on December 28, 1816, this time to successfully conclude his struggle for South American liberation from colonialism. The Haitian help was given because he promised to free slaves, Bolívar landed in Venezuela and captured Angostura

Despite the crucial logistical support from Haiti, Bolívar never recognized the independence of the former French colony Saint-Domingue.

One of Bolívar's predecessors in the liberation struggle from colonialism in Spanish ruled South America, Francisco de Miranda, created the first Venezuelan flag near Jacmel in the South of Haiti. Anchored in the Bay of Jacmel, he first raised the flag on March 12, 1806 on the Corvette Leander. This day is celebrated is still celebrated as Venezuelan Flag Day.

External link

 * Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Simón de Bolívar: Message to the Congress of Angostura, 1819