Prologue 1. Specters of Saint-Domingue 2. Fermentation 3. Inheritance 4. Fire in the Cane 5. New World 6. Defiance 7. Liberty's Land 8. The Opening 9. Power 10. Enemies of Liberty 11. Territory 12. The Tree of Liberty 13. Those Who Die Epilogue: Out of the Ashes Notes Index
What Laurent Dubois has achieved is a synthesis of the most current research in a strikingly accessible and appealing presentation, be it to experts or to general readers unfamiliar with the subject. Avengers of the New World is more than likely to become the new standard work in English on one of the most under-reported events in the history of the Western Hemisphere. -- Madison Smartt Bell, author of All Souls Rising and Master of the Crossroads The course of the Haitian Revolution was as checkered as the storyline of an Italian opera. Laurent Dubois wisely and eloquently reduces that complexity to understandable proportions. He shows how the revolutionary leadership evolved over time, both defining its own objectives and winning its battles along the way. With care and good judgment, Dubois builds for us a compelling picture of the emergent consciousness of the slaves. His distinctive contribution is to bring to life one of the most significant events in modern political history, an event that has been deliberately misrepresented for the past two centuries. -- Sidney Mintz, author of Caribbean Transformations and Sweetness and Power By abolishing slavery and granting citizenship to all men, the Haitian Revolution fulfilled the ideals of the Age of Democratic Revolution in a way that France, the United States and other nations were not yet ready to accept. Dubois demonstrates the revolutionary determination of enslaved Caribbean- and African-born people and captures the voices of key actors including Toussaint Louverture, individual slaves, free people of color, rival black generals, and white women. This is a story that needs to be told in the engaging yet scholarly voice that Dubois achieves. -- John Garrigus, Professor of History, Jacksonville University Avengers of the New World is a luminous model for the history of revolution, for a 'people's' history of freedom, and, not least, for a history that is truly Atlantic in scope. At once original, deeply learned, and gracefully written, Dubois' achievement is worthy of its great lineage: that of C.L.R. James and Aime Cesaire." -- James C. Scott, author of Domination and the Arts of Resistance and Weapons of the Weak Brilliantly conceived, beautifully rendered, Laurent Dubois's narrative places the Haitian Revolution at the center of the Age of Revolutions-one of three that shook the world--challenging in the process the stubborn academic myopia that divides the history of Europe from its colonies, and whites from blacks. -- Thomas Holt, author of The Problem of Race in the 21st Century
Laurent Dubois is Professor of History and Romance Studies, Duke University.
A stern and brilliant new book… The Haitian Revolution, in all its
ugliness and brutality, was the response of the oppressed,
indentured and enslaved to their unjust condition. And it is this
whirling and chaotic world that Dubois so vividly brings to life in
Avengers of the New World and so accurately deconstructs… Dubois
starts this book about war with chapters about love, death, books
and graveyards. His discussions of interracial love affairs and the
attitudes of slaves both toward death among slaves and toward death
among masters are riveting and eloquent. Indeed, Dubois’ literary
sensibility informs the book from start to finish, so that at its
beginning as well as its end, the reader feels as if the story must
be fiction, yet it is not… Dubois calls Haiti a nation ‘founded on
ashes,’ and he has written splendidly about the fires, both
political and cultural, that lit up the land during the days of
revolution and that are still, in a sense, burning today.
*Los Angeles Times Book Review*
[A] sinuous and stirring account of ‘the largest slave revolt in
the history of the world, and the only one that succeeded.’
*Harper’s*
Laurent Dubois’s patient study offers a valuable glimpse into the
complexities of the creation of modern Haiti that supplants the
usual commonplaces on this ‘first black republic.’
*Times Literary Supplement*
There are hundreds, perhaps thousands of books about the Haitian
Revolution, but only a handful are indispensable. Avengers of the
New World joins that select company. A powerful narrative informed
by the latest research, it digs beneath ready-made notions—whether
of purely heroic rebels or of implacable caste hatreds—to bring to
light the forging of new identities and new ideals.
*The Nation*
In this exhaustively researched and valuable account, Laurent
Dubois, a history professor at Michigan State, looks back to the
founding of Haiti… Dubois, writing in an accessible style and with
a wide-ranging focus, has done an impressive job depicting the
tumultuous founding of Haiti. Readers wanting to place the
Caribbean nation’s current struggles in a larger historical context
will find Dubois an eminently worthwhile resource.
*Christian Science Monitor*
Avengers of the New World weaves the experiences and stories of
slaves, free Blacks, wealthy whites, and French administrators into
an unforgettable tale of insurrection, war, heroism, and victory.
Laurent Dubois examines the actions of the famous leaders of the
revolt such as Toussaint Louverture and Jean-Jacques Dessalines,
but also of lesser-known men and women caught up in the violent and
tumultuous events. Dubois establishes the Haitian Revolution, which
is often misunderstood or forgotten, as a foundational moment in
the history of democracy and of human rights… Avengers of the New
World can help us put the current situation in Haiti in context,
explain the reasons behind the violence, and give us an idea of
what the future might hold.
*Caribbean Life*
How well Dubois wears the mantle of this exciting area of study.
His engaging analysis of the social forces at play in Saint
Domingue (now Haiti) at the turn of the nineteenth century reveals
this conflict to be of wider significance than we may previously
have thought… Dubois’s masterful grasp of the ‘contorted human
relationships’ that define the period renders his study infinitely
relevant to our global society… With his help, we may yet come to
understand the far-reaching impact of this amazing revolution and
the true meaning of Haiti’s beloved motto: L’Union fait la
force.
*French Review*
In Avengers of the New World, Laurent Dubois has crafted a nuanced
yet highly readable narrative of the Haitian Revolution… It is a
welcome addition to the growing literature on the revolutionary
Atlantic World. Readers new to the Haitian Revolution will
especially benefit from Dubois’s lucid explanation of an enormously
complex period.
*New West Indian Guide*
For those who wish to recall the dramatic events that led to the
creation of the world’s first black republic and the Western
Hemisphere’s second independent nation, I would strongly recommend
Laurent Dubois’s Avengers of the New World… The story of Haitian
independence is well known and has been told many times before, but
Dubois’s vigorous text brings the story to vibrant new life. The
battles, personalities, and complex sociopolitical turmoil brought
about in Haiti and elsewhere in the world, especially the
slave-owning American South, are recalled with a depth and passion
that makes this an invigorating work of historical writing.
*New York Resident*
Readers unfamiliar with the history of Haiti will find this
thoughtful, gracefully written book an eye-opening account of the
complexities of the Haitian revolution.
*Salem Press Online*
This wonderfully readable account is a timely reminder of the
perils and sacrifices that marked Haiti’s revolutionary path,
resulting in only the second independent nation of this hemisphere.
Dubois rightfully emphasizes the impact of French revolutionary
principles (i.e., the Rights of Man) on the Haitian rebel slaves,
as well as the inextricable influence of French politics on the
fate of its Caribbean colony, highlighted by the power struggles
between Napoleon and Louverture. The author’s insights about the
nature of solidarity, trust, and leadership among the slaves, as
well as the organization of insurgents across the colony, are well
worth recalling, especially in this fateful year.
*Choice*
What Laurent Dubois has achieved is a synthesis of the most current
research in a strikingly accessible and appealing presentation, be
it to experts or to general readers unfamiliar with the subject.
Avengers of the New World is more than likely to become the new
standard work in English on one of the most under-reported events
in the history of the Western Hemisphere.
*Madison Smartt Bell, author of All Souls Rising and
Master of the Crossroads*
By abolishing slavery and granting citizenship to all men, the
Haitian Revolution fulfilled the ideals of the Age of Democratic
Revolution in a way that France, the United States, and other
nations were not yet ready to accept. Dubois demonstrates the
revolutionary determination of enslaved Caribbean- and African-born
people and captures the voices of key actors including Toussaint
Louverture, individual slaves, free people of color, rival black
generals, and white women. This is a story that needs to be told in
the engaging yet scholarly voice that Dubois achieves.
*John Garrigus, Professor of History, Jacksonville University*
Brilliantly conceived, beautifully rendered, Laurent Dubois’s
narrative places the Haitian Revolution at the center of the Age of
Revolutions—one of three that shook the world—challenging in the
process the stubborn academic myopia that divides the history of
Europe from its colonies, and whites from blacks.
*Thomas Holt, author of The Problem of Race in the 21st
Century*
The course of the Haitian Revolution was as checkered as the
storyline of an Italian opera. Laurent Dubois wisely and eloquently
reduces that complexity to understandable proportions. He shows how
the revolutionary leadership evolved over time, both defining its
own objectives and winning its battles along the way. With care and
good judgment, Dubois builds for us a compelling picture of the
emergent consciousness of the slaves. His distinctive contribution
is to bring to life one of the most significant events in modern
political history, an event that has been deliberately
misrepresented for the past two centuries.
*Sidney Mintz, author of Caribbean Transformations and
Sweetness and Power*
Avengers of the New World is a luminous model for the history of
revolution, for a ‘people’s’ history of freedom, and, not least,
for a history that is truly Atlantic in scope. At once original,
deeply learned, and gracefully written, Dubois’s achievement is
worthy of its great lineage: that of C. L. R. James and Aime
Cesaire.
*James C. Scott, author of Domination and the Arts of
Resistance and Weapons of the Weak*
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