Haiti Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ====Second Empire (1849–1859)==== {{main|Second Empire of Haiti}} [[File:Faustin I.jpg|thumb|Faustin I, from ''[[The Illustrated London News]]'', 16 February 1856]] On 27 February 1847, President Riché died after only a year in power and was replaced by an obscure officer, General [[Faustin Soulouque]].<ref name="Encylopedia Britannica - Haiti"/> During the first two years of Soulouque's administration the conspiracies and opposition he faced in retaining power were so manifold that the Dominicans were given a further breathing space in which to consolidate their independence.<ref name="Bethell" /> But, when in 1848 France finally recognized the Dominican Republic as a free and independent state and provisionally signed a treaty of peace, friendship, commerce and navigation, Haiti immediately protested, claiming the treaty was an attack upon their own security.<ref name="Bethell" /> Soulouque decided to invade the new Republic before the French Government could ratify the treaty.<ref name="Bethell" /> On 21 March 1849, Haitian soldiers attacked the Dominican garrison at [[Las Matas de Farfán|Las Matas]]. The demoralized defenders offered almost no resistance before abandoning their weapons. Soulouque pressed on, capturing [[San Juan Province (Dominican Republic)|San Juan]]. This left only the town of [[Azua, Dominican Republic|Azua]] as the remaining Dominican stronghold between the Haitian army and the capital. On 6 April, Azua fell to the 18,000-strong Haitian army, with a 5,000-man Dominican counterattack failing to oust them.<ref name="Latin America's Wars: Volume 1"/> The way to [[Santo Domingo]] was now clear. But the news of discontent existing at Port-au-Prince, which reached Soulouque, arrested his further progress and caused him to return with the army to his capital.<ref name="Jacques">{{citation-attribution|1={{cite book|last=Léger|first=Jacques Nicolas|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|title=Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors|year=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors|pages=202–204}}}}</ref> Emboldened by the sudden retreat of the Haitian army, the Dominicans counter-attacked. Their flotilla went as far as [[Dame-Marie, Grand'Anse|Dame-Marie]] on the west coast of Haiti, which they plundered and set on fire.<ref name="Jacques" /> After another Haitian campaign in 1855, Britain and France intervened and obtained an armistice on behalf of the Dominicans, who declared independence as the Dominican Republic.<ref name="Jacques" /> The sufferings endured by the soldiers during the campaign of 1855, and the losses and sacrifices inflicted on the country without yielding any compensation or any practical results provoked great discontent.<ref name="Jacques" /> In 1858 a revolution began, led by General [[Fabre Geffrard]], Duke of Tabara. In December of that year, Geffrard defeated the Imperial Army and seized control of most of the country.<ref name="Encylopedia Britannica - Haiti"/> As a result, the Emperor abdicated his throne on 15 January 1859. Faustin was taken into exile and General Geffrard succeeded him as president. Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page