During Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1802 expedition to restore metropolitan control over Saint-Domingue, Haitian forces occupied the fortified position of Crête-à-Pierrot in the Artibonite valley. French troops repeatedly assaulted the fort while defenders endured bombardment, shortages, casualties, and encirclement.
During Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1802 expedition to restore metropolitan control over Saint-Domingue, Haitian forces occupied the fortified position of Crête-à-Pierrot in the Artibonite valley. French troops repeatedly assaulted the fort while defenders endured bombardment, shortages, casualties, and encirclement.
Jean-Jacques Dessalines helped organize the defense. Louis Daure Lamartinière and Marie-Jeanne Lamartinière are remembered among the fort’s defenders, although the details of individual actions vary across accounts.
After weeks of fighting, the defenders broke through French lines and evacuated. The French held the position, but their losses and the resistance they encountered revealed the depth of opposition to reconquest.
Why This Event Matters
Crête-à-Pierrot demonstrated disciplined resistance and became one of the Revolution’s most enduring military symbols.
Evidence and Curatorial Note
Level B — the siege and principal commanders are well documented; some heroic episodes derive from later narratives.
Sources and Further Reading
- Crête-à-Pierrot engraving record
- Thomas Madiou, Histoire d’Haïti
- Jeremy Popkin, A Concise History of the Haitian Revolution
