About This Publication Issue number eleven from the year 1819 describes in elaborate detail the re-organization of the financial system in northern Haiti. In essence, the restructuring primarily appears to have involved separating the finances of the state from that of the royal family. The edict printed here and signed by Henry I on the 21st of September 1819 resulted in the creation of several new positions within the purview of the cabinet of the Minister of Finance and the Interior, including the separate installation in each province of the kingdom of a treasurer, a controller, a director of customs, and a controller of customs, etc. This new financial organization is complex and elaborate to the extent that further explaining it, along with each position, required the Gazette to publish a two-page Supplément, which appears here as pages 5 and 6.*Provenance: Bibliothèque de Port-Royal (Paris)Download Original (PDF)LIBERTÉ, INDÉPENDANCE OU LA MORT

The final newspaper in our collection, this issue reveals that Henry’s son, Prince Victor Henry, had recently returned from a fairly extensive tour of northern Haiti. The piece talks about how beloved the Prince is throughout the kingdom, and the writer very much seems to be setting the tone for Victor Henry to assume the throne. Indeed, the writer tells us that “satisfaction was the same everywhere the prince traveled; Haitians all being of one heart and mind, in their desire to give the prince testaments of their love.” Christophe is barely mentioned in this issue, and his absence from the tour of the kingdom, which he had done in previous years, seems a bit conspicuous. All the more so, since the article in question finishes by declaring that the prince is a “worthy inheritor of the name and the throne of Henry.” The issue also announces the opening of six schools and finishes with an excerpt from the Times of London, from which we learn that President Boyer (who had assu

About This Publication This first article in this issue, only one of three numbers in our collection from 1819, unveils King Christophe's elaborate land re-distribution plan, which primarily seems to have involved the military. The second article discusses vacancies in the nobility and in Henry I's administration. A long list of dignitaries follows, who, by this published decree, will assume various positions in the "constitutional monarchy" of the Kingdom of Hayti, celebrated here as "the greatest shield of the throne, our homeland, freedom and national independence!" Such an unequivocal defense of monarchy as a form of government, naturally, extended to affirming the creation of the Haitian nobility. Indeed, the edict listing the "new nobles and new knights of the Order of Saint-Henry," is preceded by the following statement: "It is in the bosom of this brave, generous and loyal nobility that the sacred fire of liberty and the inexhaustible mine of Haitian glory and honor will be

The first and primary article announces the creation of the Chambre Royale d'Instruction Publique, or the Royal Chamber of Public Instruction, with a decree signed by both King Christophe and Julien Prévost, the Comte de Limonade. The rest of the issue describes the new duties of the king's administrators. While at the end, the directors of all existing schools are consequently advised to present themselves before the newly created Chambre Royale in order to receive permission to continue providing instruction, according to the new and lengthy rules described in the "Ordonnance du Roi," issued on the 1st of December 1818.

One article printed here discusses the state of the Citadelle after the fire of August 25th destroyed some of its rooms. Refuting reports that the buildings were in a complete state of disrepair, the editor writes that the gunpowder stores, as well as the vaults containing the gun magazines, were preserved and therefore that the Citadelle "was in the same state of defense as before."

Announcing that several different newspapers have arrived from London, covering the period from July 28th to September 11th, the opening article lets readers know that excerpts of these various papers have been translated and reprinted here in the Gazette. The most interesting of these international news items, perhaps, comes out of Madrid, where we learn that in May, King Ferdinand of Spain sought a meeting with the other European “Powers,” including the heads of state of England, Austria, Prussia, and Russia, in order to “solicit” their aid in helping to quell the numerous rebellions then occurring in the Spanish colonies of America. “The response was not satisfactory,” the article reads, as these countries all refused to even open a conversation about it with the Spanish monarch. Nevertheless, the writer tells us that the Spanish minister persisted in the belief that Buenos Aires, Montevideo (Uruguay), Chile, Venezuela, and “in effect, all of independent America,” c

At the outset of this issue, we learn that its publication had been interrupted for some time by the illness of its editor, Baron de Vastey. Vastey’s may have been a protracted malady, in fact, since an article from the Liverpool Mercury, dated April 3, 1818 acknowledges that “the indisposition of Baron de Vastey” was responsible for “preventing his attending to public affairs.” Nevertheless, while Vastey evidently recovered, the entire rest of this issue is announced as being devoted to eulogizing Monseigneur, le Prince Noël, le duc de Port-de-Paix, the brother-in-law of King Christophe. The duke, “who always served his country,” was evidently the person appointed to be the guardian of the Citadelle, but he died when a clap of thunder struck the edifice on the 25th of August 1818, causing a fire to ignite.

The opening article here describes a celebration held for the seventh anniversary of the founding of the Haitian monarchy, described as a "constitutional monarchy," on 26 Mars 1811. The usual speeches and toasts were offered to the king on this occasion, including the following by one of the dignitaries: "After having erred under different kinds of governments, enlightened by a cruel experience, the Haytian people have given great proof of their wisdom and prudence, by throwing themselves into the arms of a hereditary monarchy, which alone could save them and retrieve them from the state of unrest and disorder in which anarchy had plunged them." A letter from the editor subsequently praises the advancements made at the hospital in Cap-Henry, which we learn has recently instituted a chair of medicine and anatomy, and at the newly created Academy of Belles-Lettres, where young students from the capital are being instructed in science. The end of the editor's letter gives some glimpse of

This entire issue consists of a chart designed to list the sale of plantations that were bid upon from December 26th to February 28th. King Christophe had set up an elaborate, but relatively straight-forward, purchase, payment, taxation, and revenue-sharing system for the former French colonial plantations that had been previously confiscated by the state. This system would allow the properties to be purchased without the purchaser having the funds upfront because of the revenue-sharing payment system and the taxes that would be levied. The nineteenth-century Haitian historian Thomas Madiou explains in precise detail how purchase, repayment, and taxation worked in volume V of his eight-volume, Histoire d'Haïti. The Grand Conseil d'Etat, which Christophe had charged with regulating this system, consisted of the Duke of Port-de-Paix, the Comte de la Taste, the Comte de Saint-Louis, and Baron de Vastey. The report of this council explained that the purpose of selling to the Haitian pe

This entire issue (save the list of prices for commodities at the very end) is taken up with a general funeral elegy given by the "very reverend-father, Jean de Dieu," the "chaplain of the queen." The occasion for the sermon was to commemorate the "Defenders of the Country" and included recounting the crimes of the French colonists with some choice words and descriptions: "All my regrets and all my tears, are reserved for these unfortunate victims that the French have destroyed with their tortures and torments; some were devoured by hungry dogs, others were consumed and burned to ashes by the horrible torment of fire; a great number perished in the abyss of the sea! O cruelty for which one can never find a suitable epithet! It seems to me that I can even hear from the center of this catafalque; from this accusing tomb, a terrible voice that shouts: Haitians, avenge our blood, avenge the death of your brothers." Yet after these strong words, the reverend pulls back and urges Haitians t

Today's issue is the ninth to appear in 1817, meaning that there were three additional issues published between October 10th and August 14th (whose issue is dated number 5). This number details the infamous Septimus Tayler episode, whereby the government of Christophe refused to negotiate with this US agent, sent by President John Quincy Adams, because Tayler did not recognize Christophe as a sovereign ruler, on the one hand; and on the other hand, because the documents in Tayler's possession meant to open negotiations about some cargo Christophe had seized from US merchants back in 1812, referred to Hayti as Saint-Domingue, and Cap-Henry as Cap-Français. This issue also details how Haitians freed a ship of captive Africans destined for slavery elsewhere in the Americas, gleefully reporting the Haitian military's capture of the ship and the government's subsequent release of 145 of "our unfortunate brothers, victims of greed and the odious traffic in human flesh." A much less celebra

About This Publication This issue begins with a description of Queen Marie-Louise's annual fête, and even contains a brief speech given by the queen in which she tells her subjects that she is "extremely touched" by the celebration. As usual, the article describes the official party with its dinners, songs, and dances. The description of the lighting stands out, however, as we read: "That night, the palace and the city of Sans-Souci were superbly illuminated." "Several pyramids," the article continues, "had been constructed and were illuminated by thousands of lanterns reflecting a thousand different colors." There is also letter from Port-au-Prince signed by B. Inginac, followed by news from Brazil and a list of the prices of commodities in northern Haiti. The issue ends with a chart assigning the former plantations of the French colonists to various nobles in King Henry's kingdom.*Provenance: Archives Nationales d'Outre-Mer (photo courtesy of Henry Stoll)Download Original (PD

This issue begins with further descriptions of the funeral services held for Christophe's nephew, Prince Jean, Duke of Port-Margot, "the Grand Artisan of the King, Grand Admiral and Grand Marshal of Hayti, Grand Cross of the Royal and Military Order of St. Henry, blood prince [prince du sang], nephew of the king, born October 17, 1780; died on July 4th, 1817, and deposited in the vault of the Dignitaries of the Royal and Parish Church of Sans-Souci, on the 23rd of the same month." Evidently, the duke's body was on display in the cathedral where it was piously mourned by the people of the capital and the marines alike. Trade statistics given at the end demonstrate robust imports and exports out of Cap-Henry (71 ships carrying "17,084,000 thousand pounds sugar and coffee") with a promise in the next issue to provide the trade statistics from the port at Gonaïves.

The opening article, drawn from a Jamaican newspaper, describes a conspiracy, by several members of the Royal Guard at Versailles, to assassinate a French count and two dukes, with the further aim of eliminating the Royal Family. We learn that the attempt was discovered, however, and that several arrests were made. Along with additional news from Paris, Jamaica, Madrid, and London, the kingdom of the north was given a report that a large powder magazine of Pétion's had exploded in Port-au-Prince, killing two hundred people and destroying many houses. There is also brief mention of the king's annual fête, as well as a lengthy  description of the funeral held in light of the death of Christophe's nephew, Prince Jean. The issue finishes by printing the last of an edict of the king concerning the "Mode of Sale and Disposal of the Kingdom's State Property."

One crucial point that issue number 2 of the year 1817 reveals is how irregular publication of the Gazette had become, as this second issue comes in June, while issue number one had been published in January, a full 6 months earlier. One reason for this may have been the sudden change of printer. For, we also observe that P. Roux is no longer listed at the end of the issue, as he had been in every other issue of  the Gazette Officielle, the Gazette Royale, and all previously published versions of the Almanach Royal. The publication is now attributed merely to the "Imprimerie Royale." The absence of news for half a year may be the reason why this number is chalk full of interesting articles, which include details about the spread of yellow fever in Guadeloupe, a discussion of the abbé Grégoire being attacked for his abolitionism in France, as well as reprints of letters from Thomas Clarkson and Grégoire himself. An additional article, importantly, reports that Pétion had elec

In the course of describing the customary celebrations that take place in January every year, this issue details the “fête” of the 14th year of Haitian independence. Readers will not fail to note the way in which La Gazette continues to document both the French government’s desires and continued attempts to re-conquer their former colony through various forms of “negotiation.” Despite, or rather because of the French cabinet’s attempts to negotiate with Haiti on colonial rather than sovereign terms, the editor reports that “from the South to the North, from the East to the West, one sole and only cry can be heard once again in light of the new insults of the French: Liberty, Independence, or death, war to the French, and all their allies!” There is also a very strong argument made here to change the language of the francophone country so that “we will finally have succeeded in undermining French power in Haiti by striking at its source.” The measures taken to inst