Sudhir Hazareesingh

This is a sympathetic and admiring biography of Toussaint Louverture, who established himself as the military and political leader of St Domingue, a French colony of which the black and mixed colour population fought to free itself from slavery. The title of "Black Spartacus" seems apt, because Louverture's story also ended tragically.

Toussaint was a Black man born on as a slave on a plantation. It is highly characteristic of colonial societies and slavery-based economies that such men were denied educational opportunities and systematically excluded from career options that would enable them to develop leadership skills. While Toussaint was freed from slavery before the revolution began and given a role with some responsibilities as a coachman (which involved more than just driving the carriage), it is nevertheless very remarkable that he emerged as a leader familiar with contemporary enlightenment thinking, a skilled military officer, a deft politician, and imaginative maker of laws. I find that Hazareesingh's description of the life and activities of the young Toussaint doesn't do enough to explain his personal development and emergence as a leading figure. In all probability, the source material to do so is lacking, and the author did not want to speculate too much. But it is a gap in our understanding.

The life of Toussaint Louverture as the most powerful man in St Domingue and the recognised authority of the colony is much better documented, as a he left a considerable paper trail. Hazareesingh sketches the portrait of a man who was capable of subtle scheming as well as brutal violence, who successfully defended the interests of his colony as long as the game was played within the confines of the Caribbean world, but who was ultimately defeated when the great powers of the day temporarily ceased fighting and the French were able to send a large army in an (ultimately futile) attempt to restore the old order. Though the author refers to Toussaint's fortune and his mistresses (plural) a few times, he describes his subject as a devout, generally virtuous, somewhat unreliable, but overall well-intentioned man. One gets the strong impression that Toussaint's revolutionary insistence on racial equality for all came together with very conservative social and economic views.

The concluding chapters on modern political and artistic attitudes to Toussaint Louverture are not entirely without interest but far too enumerative.

Overall, a very successful and readable biography.… (altro)