Haiti, 1791–1804

Hybrid Regime · Republic · Central America · Age of Revolutions era

The Haitian Revolution, the only successful large-scale slave revolt, which defeated French forces and founded the first Black republic in 1804.

A massive slave uprising in the French colony of Saint-Domingue escalated into a revolution that abolished slavery, defeated French, Spanish and British forces, and in 1804 proclaimed the independent state of Haiti, the first republic founded by former slaves. The wars devastated the plantation economy and population. The new state faced isolation, indemnity demands and internal conflict over its political order.

Open Haiti 1791–1804 in the interactive 3D atlas →

Dominant patterns

  • External Expansion
  • Militarization
  • Economic Crisis
  • Revolutionary Risk
  • Institutional Decay

Political-science factor profile

Each factor 0–100; higher = stronger authoritarian / crisis pole (except institutional stability, where higher = stronger institutions).

Centralization of Power45
Media Control40
Repression55
Nationalism70
Militarization85
Economic Stress80
External Conflict88
Cult of Personality55
Elite Fragmentation60
Institutions30
Social Polarization72
Corruption & Patrimonialism45
Ideological Mobilization65
External Sovereignty70

Economy & society

GDP per capita$1000 (intl-$)
GDP growth-8%/yr
Population500k people
Share of world population0.06%
Territory~28k km²
Capital population~20k

Closest historical twins

The country-eras whose structural profile most resembles Haiti 1791–1804, by similarity score (0–100).

  1. Ottoman Empire, 1908–1918 – similarity 92/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  2. China, 1937–1945 – similarity 90/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  3. Ukraine, 2013–2015 – similarity 82/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  4. Poland, 1918–1935 – similarity 82/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  5. Mexico, 1910–1920 – similarity 81/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  6. China, 1927–1937 – similarity 78/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Revolutionary Risk, Institutional Decay
  7. Syria, 2011–2019 – similarity 74/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Economic Crisis, Revolutionary Risk
  8. Spain, 1788–1814 – similarity 74/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Institutional Decay

What followed

  • Abolition of slavery and independence from France.
  • The founding of the first Black republic.