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Introduction

          This blog was originally created in 2014 as the final project for a course at Duke University. The course relied on manuscripts, photographs, and other resources available through the David M. Rubenstein Library Collection to examine various cultural and policy aspects of the Caribbean from the last three centuries.

First page of the manuscript copy of the Haitian Declaration of Independence, David M. Rubenstein Library, Duke University. http://blogs.library.duke.edu/rubenstein/2014/01/14/unveiling-the-haitian-declaration-of-independence/

          The thorough research and critical textual examination involved in this work caused me to wonder what other aspects of early Haitian society (i.e. directly following the Haitian Declaration of Independence on January 1, 1804) were/are represented in different archival resources. While I am a first-year PhD student in Duke’s Romance Studies Department (in the French and Francophone Studies program), I am also enrolled in the International Development Policy graduate certificate program through Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy. Thus, I am constantly striving to forge interdisciplinary connections between my work in the Humanities and my interest in using such narrative and literary analysis to gain a better understanding of historical and contemporary decisions involving law and policy. The blog you are currently reading is a very specific attempt to do just that: Using archival prints and manuscripts from the early period of Haiti’s independence (from 1804 to around 1820) alongside more contemporary historical studies, I hope to elucidate many of the attitudes, trends, and actions taken concerning education in the newly-formed nation. And here, it is absolutely crucial that I point out the importance of recent developments in archival and digital technologies, allowing me access to a wide array of texts and broader resources to which I would not have had access a mere ten years ago. Hence, I undertake the following section, which describes the major work done in the twentieth century on early education in Haiti, with the desire to expand upon and engage these studies, not with the aim of critiquing their methodologies.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

I would like to thank my professors of the "Caribbean at Duke" course, Deborah Jenson, Holly Ackerman, and William Hansen, for all of their support and insight throughout the semester.  I learned an incredible amount not only about Caribbean history but also how to make better use of research resources at my disposal and how to maneuver archival accounts.  This project would not have been possible without them.  I also thank my colleagues from that class who provided me with constant feedback and advice.

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Methodologies and Previous Studies

         In proceeding with my own investigations of education and the policies/laws surrounding education in Haiti from 1804-1820, I made the conscious decision to begin my research with a careful examination of archival materials from the period (newspapers, journals, letters, reports, etc.). It was not until after I had gathered bits and pieces of primary source evidence from the period, as I put those pieces together, that I compared my own findings to those of the major Caribbean and Haitian scholars from the last century who have completed significant research on the early development of culture and education in Haiti. For the purposes of this blog, however, I feel it significant to proceed in the opposite order. In this section, I detail major contemporary works before reaching the body of my report in which I present the various pieces of the archival puzzle tracing education in post-independence Haiti.

  1) Logan, Rayford W. “Education in Haiti.” The Journal of Negro History 15.4 (October, 1930): 401–460.

Logan presents his work as information to counter the widespread commentaries that have "cursed with 'chronic wrongdoing and impotence'... the Republic of Haiti prior to 1915" (401), specifically with regards to education.  Indeed, the author claims that his paper is intended to demonstrate:

"It seeks to show first, that the colonial history of Haiti was not conducive to the development of a system of education and that the revolution created even more difficulties for the establishment of such a system; second, that with the best intentions in the world the Haitians never developed an adequate system of education; third, that the system evolved was one of the primary factors in the revolutionary course of the country's history" (401-402).

Despite his efforts to defend the young nation, Logan does not support his arguments with significant detail.  He does, however, make important observations concerning the mentality of the Haitian rulers during its early years as an independent country:

"...the trumpets had hardly ceased their triumphal blasts proclaiming the empire of Jean-Jacques Premier (Dessalines) before the government bethought itself of establishing schools" (411).  Logan goes on to state that even during the same year that the declaration of independence was made, "there were apparently public schools" (411), but he does not offer any concrete evidence of this.

Citing "the death of Dessalines at the gates of Port au Prince in 1806, the ensuing division of the country between Pétion and Christophe, the civil war precipitated by Rigaud in 1810, and apprehensions of another invasion by France" (412), Logan notes that advances in education were not made until more than ten years after independence was declared (despite promises made in the early versions of the Constitution).

During the divided reigns of Henri Christophe (in the North) and Alexandre Pétion (in the South), things took a turn for the better in terms of education in Haiti.  Logan clearly favors the accomplishments of Pétion in his discussion, citing his counterpart in the North as "hard-fisted" and "despotic" (415).  Logan does concede, though, that Christophe "was able to include education in his restless program of reconstruction" (415).  Indeed, Christophe apparently created a new schooling system in the northern region of Haiti directed by six English women.  He also instituted a royal commission to oversee many of the newly established schools as well as a secondary school called the Royal College.  Finally, to demonstrate his commitment to the development of education, Henri Christophe made a number of proclamations during his time as king (many of which I have included below as part of my own research).  In fact, Logan concludes that, with regards to Christophe, "few countries of the period displayed a more determined or more intelligent effort to provide adequate means of learning" (417).

Table of statistics concerning the schools established in northern Haiti during Henri Christophe's reign:

        Logan, pages 416-417 - cites the tables as being from "De Vastey, Essay on the Causes, etc., Appendix, pp. CXV-CXVL"

For me, the most interesting of all Logan's observations, in terms of the uniqueness of the analysis, were the "two inherent defects" he listed of Henry Christophe's education system: "First, English was the basis, the goal, the test of learning.  Second, like the creations of so many other benevolent despots, this commendable undertaking hardly survived the gold-bullet suicide of King Henri Premier in 1820.  The administration of Boyer, who welded together again the kingdom of Christophe and the republic of Pétion, failed to continue the impetus of his predecessors" (418).  Apparently, though, Logan does not find it "surprising that Haiti accomplished very little from 1820-1840" (419).

    2) Clément, Job B. “History of Education in Haiti: 1804-1915 (First Part).” Revista de Historia de América 87 (January 1, 1979): 141–181.

and

Clément, Job B. “History of Education in Haiti: 1804-1915.” Revista de Historia de América 88 (July 1, 1979): 33–74.

  [Note: Clément’s articles, which appeared in Revista de Historia de América in 1979 (published by the Pan American Institute of Geography and History), were originally presented as his PhD dissertation at the University of Florida in 1977.]

Clément divides his findings by type of education and related subjects (i.e. organization; division of classes; primary school; secondary school; vocational school; etc.).  Noting the scarcity of information and statistics, Clément devotes little discussion to the period directly following independence.  He does note several key points, though, which I feel it important to repeat here:

In terms of organization of the school system, he remarks that there were no schools directly following Haiti's independence because "the few private schools which existed before the revolutionary war were closed" (162).  In fact, according to Clément's findings, "the first reference to formal education" did not occur until 1805 in Article 19 of the Constitution: "'In each military district, there shall be a public school for the youth'" (163).

Article 34 of the revised Constitution of 1807 also makes reference to the organization of education: "'There shall be a central school in each arrondissement; and it will be permissible for any citizen to establish a private school'" (163).  However, Clément asserts that "the difficulty of finding the exact number of arrondissements in Haiti in 1807 and the stipulation that 'any citizen' could establish a private school make it almost impossible to verify the number of schools in Haiti at that time. Moreover, the internal struggle that unseated Emperor Jacques I in 1806 was not favorable to the growth of schools" (163).  Internal disagreement and strife were actually elements noted by a number of scholars as impeding the development of any sort of formal or accessible system of education.

During the period (1806-1820) that Haiti was divided between Henri Christophe's rule in the North and Alexandre Pétion's rule in the South, efforts to advance organized education were undertaken separately in each kingdom: "Henry Christophe, who took the name of Henry I, established several primary schools after the Lancastrian system9 and the Royal College, to which courses in surgery were added to the curriculum to form the beginning of a college of medicine. Alexandre Pétion, in his territory, established a school of health, a lycee - the Lycee Alexandre Pétion - and a Lancastrian school" (165).

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excerpt from: Loi sur l’instruction publique. Port-au-Prince: L’Imprimerie du Gouvernement, 20 May 1820. Pages 7-8.

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excerpts from: Loi sur l’instruction publique. Port-au-Prince: L’Imprimerie du Gouvernement, 20 May 1820. Pages 3-6.

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excerpt from: Loi sur l'instruction publique. Port-au-Prince: L'Imprimerie du Gouvernement, 20 May 1820. Page 1.

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Boyer a justifié le choix des haytiens : il s’est montré digne de succéder au fondateur de la république. Trente mois se sont à peine écoulés depuis son élection, et déjà les institutions se sont affermies. Le commerce y fleurit, la jeunesse est instruite, les arts et les sciences y font tous les jours des progrès… bref, la civilisation y va atteindre son dernier période.

de Genève, L. M. Encore un mot sur la république d’Hayti. Paris : Imprimerie d’Ant. Bailleul, 1820. Pages 9-10.

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Quotations from "L'Hermite d'Hayti" Concerning Education (1820)

[Excerpts from: Saladin, J. M., ed. “Prospectus.” L’Hermite d’Hayti, journal historique et littéraire [Port-au-Prince, Haiti] No. 1 (1820): Pages 1-8.]

« Un Spectacle, disait l’autre jour un étranger, serait un établissement bien utile à Haïti ; comment se fait-il que dans la capitale même de la République, avec une population aussi considérable, on n’ait pas un délassement de ce genre, où l’on puisse, en trouvant une distraction agréable, tirer à cette école des mœurs, ce ton de civilité si nécessaire dans un pays naissant, chez un peuple doué d’un si heureux naturel, et d’une aptitude si grande à tout ce qui est sciences et arts » (1).

  « Je me permis de lui faire observer que ces sortes d’établissemens, bien qu’utiles, sont plutôt de luxe que de première nécessité ; qu’un gouvernement sage et prévoyant n’y doit sa sollicitude que lorsqu’il a préalablement pourvu à tous ceux que commande la sûreté de l’état, la sécurité des citoyens, l’instruction publique, et ceux qu’à son tour réclame l’humanité souffrante » (1).

  « …j’aurais renoncé à mon projet, si je n’eusse en quelques raisons de compter sur l’indulgence du public, que je réclame d’avance, avec la modestie d’un écolier qui soumet son début dans la carrière épineuse de la littérature » (2).

cover page of L'Hermite d'Hayti. No. 1.

  « C’est en cultivant les arts, les sciences que nous arriverons à cet état de splendeur qui, tour à tour, a illustré les differens peuples.  Tous les états ont des périodes d’enfance, de jeunesse, d’âge mûr et de caducité » (4).

  « L’éducation sert au développement de nos idées ; elle les fortifie, les épure et nous élève à la dignité d’hommes : c’est par elle que nous acquérons ces connaissances des tems et des peuples qui nous ont précédés, que nous puisons dans ces modèles des exemples dans ce qu’ils ont fait de bon et que nous apprenons à éviter leurs écarts et les écueils où ils sont tombés.  Quel délassement l’homme ne trouve-t-il pas dans le fruit de l’éducation ; elle devient son guide dans le sentier difficile de la vie ; elle lui apprend à distinguer et à raisonner ; il ne voit plus la nature en masse dont les effets sont pour lui des cas fortuits ; il peut définir les causes de tout ce qui lui apparaît.  L’éducation assigne à l’homme un rang dans la société ; elle peut l’élever, selon son aptitude, aux postes les plus éminens.  La vie de l’homme est trop courte et sa raison n’est pas assez précoce pour lui faire sentir assez tôt le prix de l’étude.  Quel charme inexprimable pour ces hommes souvent nés dans une condition obscure de savoir que leurs lumières ont éclairé leurs contemporains et seront encore un flambeau pour les siècles futurs » (6).

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Taylor, Charles, ed. “National Register: Foreign.” The Literary Panorama and National Register. New Series. Volume 7. London: Simpkin & Marshall, and Charles Taylor. 1818. Page 667.

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Christophe, Henri, and Prince Saunders. "Reflections on the Abolition of the Slave Trade." Haytian Papers. London: W. Reed, Law Bookseller, 1816. Page 221.

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Christophe, Henri [Transcribed by Prince Saunders]. "Kingdom of Hayti. Manifesto of the King." Haytian Papers. Presented in Sans-Souci, 1 Jan. 1816. London: W. Reed, Law Bookseller, 1816. Page 189.

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[Christophe] engages in a plan of farming out the demesnes; and in the distribution of farms he is not unmindful of those unfortunate widows and hapless orphans whom the fate of war or the course of nature has deprived of a husband, of a tender father; he replaces the want of this tender father to these interesting creatures, not only in securing their maintenance, but by procuring for them the benefits of an education, which is equivalent to replacing, for the country, the authors of their being!

Prince Saunders. "State of Hayti: Proclamation." Haytian Papers. Henri Christophe and Prince Saunders.London: W. Reed, Law Bookseller, 1816. Page 110.

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Christophe, Henri [Transcribed by Prince Saunders]. “Kingdom of Hayti. Proclamation. The King to the Haytians.” Haytian Papers. Presented at the Royal Palace of Sans-Souci, 1 Jan. 1816. London: W. Reed, Law Bookseller, 1816. Pages 206-207.

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Taylor, Charles, ed. “National Register: Foreign.” The Literary Panorama and National Register. New Series. Volume 7. London: Simpkin & Marshall, and Charles Taylor. 1818. Pages 314-315.

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[TRANSLATION] Titre XIV : Des Écoles de Santé et du Mode d’Instruction (March 3, 1808)

[translated from the excerpt of the "law on the organization of health services of the military hospitals of the Republic" in:

Vincent, Sténio, and L.-C. Lhérisson. La législation de l’instruction publique de la république d’Haïti (1804-1895). 1st Edition. Paris: Vve. Ch. Dunod & P. Vicq, 1820. Pages 119-120.]

Title 19: Schools of Health and Mode of Instruction

Art. 1 - There will be established a school of health in the hospitals of Port-au-Prince and of Les Cayes, under the management and supervision of the chief officer of health of the department: the student apprentices will number between ten and twelve.

Art. 2 - The inherent dignity of the position of health officer requires certain essential conditions to be met in order to be admitted to the school: he must me no less than twelve years of age, nor more than sixteen, he must be able to read and write well, he must prove his good behavior and be reputed to be of an obedient character.

Art. 3 - The noviate period of the apprentices will be two years; they will be fed and looked after at the expense of the Republic; they will be housed, when possible, at the hospital, under the supervision of an experienced and intelligent health officer (specifically chosen for this position by the chief health officer), who will be known as the provost-marshal.  They apprentices will be reasonably paid three gourdes each month.

Art. 4 - They will be taught to prepare the basic tools and devices, to construct and apply bandages by hand, to understand and apply vestications, moxas, suction pads, setons, and to cauterize.  They will be taught to skillfully extract teeth.

Art. 5 - They will be accustomed to perform, under various circumstances, injections which certain cases require, and to extract foreign objects from the body; they will be taught to apply tourniquets, all manners of wielding a scalpel, to make use of a scalpel in different situations, to methodically perform cutaneous incisions, and to practice bloodletting.

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CONSTITUTION DE 1816 Dispositions Générales Art. 35. – Il sera créé et organisé un établissement général de secours publics pour élever les enfants abandonnés, soulager les pauvres infirmes et fournir du travail aux pauvres valides qui n’auraient pu s’en procurer. Art. 36. – Il sera aussi créé et organisé une institution publique, commune à tous les citoyens, gratuite à l’égard des parties d’enseignement indispensables pour tous les hommes, et dont les établissements seront distribués graduellement dans un rapport combiné avec la division de la République.

Vincent, Sténio, and L.-C. Lhérisson. La législation de l’instruction publique de la république d’Haïti (1804-1895). 1st Edition. Paris: Vve. Ch. Dunod & P. Vicq, 1820. Pages 113-114.

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[Henry Christophe] s’occupe du mode d’affermage des biens domaniaux ; et dans la distribution des fermes, il n’oublie pas ces infortunées épousés, et ces malheureux orphelins que le sort des armes ou les événemens de la nature ont privés d’un époux, d’un père tendre ; il remplace ce père tendre pour ces intéressantes créatures, non-seulement en assurant leur subsistance, mais en leur procurant les bienfaits d’une ÉDUCATION qui doit les mettre à même de remplacer, pour la patrie, les auteurs de leurs jours !

Limonade, Count. Relation des glorieux événemens qui ont porté leurs majesties royales sur le trône d’Hayti. London: Imprimerie de Schulze & Dean, 1814. Pages 41-42.

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“Memoranda Respecting Hayti.” The Christian Observer. Volume 8. London: John Hatchard [Printed by Ellerton & Byworth], 1810. Page 22.