Kingdom of Haiti in the context of "Jean-Jacques Dessalines"

Cap-Haïtien (French: [kap a.isjɛ̃] ; Haitian Creole: Kap Ayisyen; "Haitian Cape") is a commune of about 300,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the department of Nord. Previously named Cap‑Français (Haitian Creole: Kap-Fransè; initially Cap-François Haitian Creole: Kap-Franswa) and Cap‑Henri (Haitian Creole: Kap-Anri) during the rule of Henri I, it was historically nicknamed the Paris of the Antilles, because of its wealth and sophistication, expressed through its architecture and artistic life. It was an important city during the colonial period, serving as the capital of the French Colony of Saint-Domingue from the city's formal foundation in 1711 until 1770 when the capital was moved to Port-au-Prince. After the Haitian Revolution, it became the capital of the Kingdom of Haiti under King Henri I until 1820.

Cap-Haïtien's long history of independent thought was formed in part by its relative distance from Port-au-Prince, the barrier of mountains between it and the southern part of the country, and a history of large African populations. These contributed to making it a legendary incubator of independent movements since slavery times. For instance, from February 5–29, 2004, the city was taken over by militants who opposed the rule of the Haïtian president Jean-Bertrand Aristide. They eventually created enough political pressure to force him out of office and the country.

The First Empire of Haiti, officially known as the Empire of Haiti (French: Empire d'Haïti; Haitian Creole: Anpi an Ayiti), was an elective monarchy in North America. Haiti was controlled by France before declaring independence on 1 January 1804. The Governor-General of Haiti, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, created the empire on 22 September 1804. After being proclaimed emperor by the Generals of the Haitian Revolution Army, he held his coronation ceremony on 6 October and took the name Jacques I. The constitution of 20 May 1805 set out the way the empire was to be governed, with the country split into six military divisions. The general of each division corresponded directly with the emperor or the general in chief appointed by the emperor. The constitution also set out the succession to the throne, with the crown being elective and the reigning emperor having the power to appoint his successor. The constitution also banned white people, with the exception of naturalised Germans and Poles, from owning property inside the empire.

Jacques I was assassinated on 17 October 1806. Two members of his administration, Alexandre Pétion and Henri Christophe, then assumed power, which led to a split in the country – with Pétion leading the southern Republic of Haiti and Christophe leading the northern State of Haiti (later Kingdom of Haiti). Some 43 years later, on 26 August 1849, President Faustin Soulouque re-established an Empire in Haiti that lasted until 15 January 1859.

Henri Christophe (French pronunciation: [ɑ̃ʁi kʁistɔf]; 6 October 1767 – 8 October 1820) was a key leader in the Haitian Revolution and the only monarch of the Kingdom of Haiti.

Born in the British Caribbean, Christophe was possibly of Senegambian descent. Beginning with the slave uprising of 1791, he rose to power in the ranks of the Haitian revolutionary military. The revolution succeeded in gaining independence from France in 1804. In 1805 he took part under Jean-Jacques Dessalines in the capture of Santo Domingo (now Dominican Republic), against French forces who acquired the colony from Spain in the Treaty of Basel.

The first Republic of Haiti (French: République d'Haïti; Haitian Creole: Repiblik d Ayiti) controlled the southern portions of Haiti from 1806 until 1820. The republic, commonly referred to as South Haiti during its existence, was created on 17 October 1806, following the assassination of Emperor Jacques I and the overthrow of the First Empire of Haiti. The southern Republic of Haiti was ruled by General Alexandre Pétion, a free person of color, as President from 9 March 1807 until his death on 29 March 1818. He was succeeded by Jean-Pierre Boyer.

While the Republic of Haiti had control in the south, Henri Christophe ruled over the north of the country as President of the State of Haiti until 1811 when he proclaimed the Kingdom of Haiti with himself as King Henri I. Following King Henri's death in 1820, Haiti was unified as a single republican state under Boyer.

The State of Haiti (French: État d'Haïti; Haitian Creole: Leta an Ayiti) was the name of the state in northern Haiti. It was created on 17 October 1806 following the assassination of Emperor Jacques I and the overthrow of the First Empire of Haiti. The northern State of Haiti was ruled by Henri Christophe originally as Provisional Chief of the Haitian Government from 17 October 1806 until 17 February 1807 when he became President of the State of Haiti. The 1807 constitution for the State of Haiti made the post of president a position for life with the president having the power to appoint his successor. On 28 March 1811 President Henri was proclaimed King Henri I, thereby dissolving the State of Haiti and creating the Kingdom of Haiti.

Following the assassination of Emperor Jacques I, the country was split. Parallel with the government of Christophe in the north, Alexandre Pétion, a free person of color, ruled over the south of the country as President of the Republic of Haiti until his death in 1818. He was succeeded by Jean-Pierre Boyer, who reunited the two parts of the nation after the deaths of Henri I and Henri I's son, Jacques-Victor Henry, in 1820.

The Republic of Haiti (French: République d’Haïti, Haitian Creole: Repiblik d Ayiti, Spanish: República de Haití) from 1820 to 1849 was effectively a continuation of the first Republic of Haiti that had been in control of the south of what is now Haiti since 1806. This period of Haitian history commenced with the fall of the Kingdom of Haiti in the north and the reunification of Haiti in 1820 under Jean-Pierre Boyer. This period also encompassed Haitian occupation of Spanish Santo Domingo from 1822 to 1844, creating a unified political entity governing the entire island of Hispaniola. Although termed a republic, this period was dominated by Boyer's authoritarian rule as president-for-life until 1843. The first Republic of Haiti ended in 1849 when President Faustin Soulouque declared himself emperor, thus beginning the Second Empire of Haiti.

Jean-Pierre Boyer (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ pjɛʁ bwaje]; 15 February 1776 – 9 July 1850) was a Haitian military officer and statesman. He was one of the leaders of the Haitian Revolution, and served as the president of Haiti from 1818 to 1843. He reunited the north and south of the country into the Republic of Haiti in 1820 and also annexed the newly independent Spanish Haiti (Santo Domingo), which brought all of Hispaniola under one Haitian government by 1822. Serving as president for just under 25 years, Boyer managed to rule for the longest period of time of any Haitian leader.