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For Parents/Educators you are very welcome to download any or all of our
Printable Bee Thematic Units and/or Lesson Plans for use in your homes,
homeschool, classroom or community centres. ►►Haiti Home Page.
HISTORY
Precolonial and Spanish colonial periods
The island of Hispaniola, of which Haiti occupies the western third, is one of
many Caribbean islands inhabited at the time of European arrival by the
Taíno Indians, speakers of an Arawakan language. The Taíno name for the
entire island was Kiskeya. In the Taíno societies of the Caribbean Islands, the
largest unit of political organisation was led by a cacique; hence the term
'caciquedom' (French caciquat, Spanish cacicazgo) for these Taíno polities,
which are often called "chiefdoms". Before the arrival of Christopher
Columbus, the island of Hispaniola was divided among five or six long-
established caciquedoms.
The caciquedoms were tributary kingdoms, with payment consisting of
harvests. Taíno cultural artifacts include cave paintings in several locations
in the country, which have become national symbols of Haiti and tourist
attractions. Modern-day Léogane, a town in the southwest, is at the site of
Xaragua's former capital.
Christopher Columbus landed at Môle Saint-Nicolas on 5 December 1492,
and claimed the island for Spain. Nineteen days later, his ship the Santa
María ran aground near the present site of Cap-Haïtien; Columbus was
forced to leave behind 39 men, founding the settlement of La Navidad.
Following the destruction of La Navidad by the local indigenous people,
Columbus moved to the eastern side of the island and established La
Isabela. One of the earliest leaders to fight off Spanish conquest was Queen
Anacaona, a princess of Xaragua who married Caonabo, the cacique of
Maguana. The couple resisted Spanish rule in vain; she was captured by the
Spanish and executed in front of her people. To this day, Anacaona is
revered in Haiti as one of the country's founders.
The Spaniards exploited the island for its gold, mined chiefly by local
Amerindians directed by the Spanish occupiers. Those refusing to work in the
mines were killed or sold into slavery. Europeans brought with them chronic
infectious diseases that were new to the Caribbean, to which the
indigenous population lacked immunity. These new diseases were the chief
cause of the dying off of the Taíno, but ill treatment, malnutrition, and a
drastic drop in the birthrate as a result of societal disruption also
contributed. The first recorded smallpox outbreak in the Americas occurred
on Hispaniola in 1507.
The Laws of Burgos, 1512–1513, were the first nationally codified set of laws'
governing the behaviour of Spanish settlers in America, particularly with
regards to native Indians. They forbade the maltreatment of natives, and
endorsed their conversion to Catholicism. The national government of Spain
found it difficult to enforce these laws in a distant colony.
The Spanish governors began importing enslaved Africans for labour. In
1517, Charles V authorised the draft of slaves. The Taínos became virtually,
but not completely, extinct on the island of Hispaniola. Some who evaded
capture fled to the mountains and established independent settlements.
Survivors mixed with escaped African slaves (runaways called maroons)
and produced a multiracial generation called zambos. French settlers later
called people of mixed African and Amerindian ancestry marabou. The
mestizo were children born to relationships between native women and
European – usually Spanish – men. During French rule, children of mixed race,
usually born of unions between African women and European men, were
called mulâtres. Creoles are a mixture of European, Amerindian, and
African ancestry regardless of skin colour.
As a gateway to the Caribbean, Hispaniola became a haven for pirates. The
western part of the island was settled by French buccaneers. Among them
was Bertrand d'Ogeron, who succeeded in growing tobacco. His success
prompted many of the numerous buccaneers and freebooters to turn into
settlers. This population did not submit to Spanish royal authority until the
year 1660 and caused a number of conflicts. By 1640, the buccaneers of
Tortuga were calling themselves the Brethren of the Coast. French pirate
Jean Lafitte, who operated in New Orleans and Galveston, was born in
Port-au-Prince around 1782.
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, who might have been born in St Marc, Saint-
Domingue in 1745 and established a fur trading post at present-day
Chicago, Illinois. John James Audubon, the renowned ornithologist and
painter, was born in 1785 in Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue and painted,
catalogued and described the birds of North America.
In 1779 more than 500 volunteers from Saint-Domingue, under the command
of Comte d'Estaing, fought alongside American colonial troops against the
British in the Siege of Savannah, one of the most significant foreign
contributions to the American Revolutionary War.
17th century settlement
Bertrand d'Orgeron attracted many colonists from Martinique and
Guadeloupe, such as the Roy family (Jean Roy, 1625–1707); Hebert (Jean
Hebert, 1624, with his family) and Barre (Guillaume Barre, 1642, with his
family). They and others were driven from their lands when more land was
needed for the extension of the sugar plantations. From 1670 to 1690, a drop
in the tobacco markets affected the island and significantly reduced the
number of settlers.
The first windmill for processing sugar was created in 1685.
2010 Earthquake (new page)
Haitian Revolution (new page)
Since 1915
Printables & Downloads
Printable Bee Thematic Units and/or Lesson Plans for use in your homes,
homeschool, classroom or community centres. ►►Haiti Home Page.
HISTORY
Precolonial and Spanish colonial periods
The island of Hispaniola, of which Haiti occupies the western third, is one of
many Caribbean islands inhabited at the time of European arrival by the
Taíno Indians, speakers of an Arawakan language. The Taíno name for the
entire island was Kiskeya. In the Taíno societies of the Caribbean Islands, the
largest unit of political organisation was led by a cacique; hence the term
'caciquedom' (French caciquat, Spanish cacicazgo) for these Taíno polities,
which are often called "chiefdoms". Before the arrival of Christopher
Columbus, the island of Hispaniola was divided among five or six long-
established caciquedoms.
The caciquedoms were tributary kingdoms, with payment consisting of
harvests. Taíno cultural artifacts include cave paintings in several locations
in the country, which have become national symbols of Haiti and tourist
attractions. Modern-day Léogane, a town in the southwest, is at the site of
Xaragua's former capital.
Christopher Columbus landed at Môle Saint-Nicolas on 5 December 1492,
and claimed the island for Spain. Nineteen days later, his ship the Santa
María ran aground near the present site of Cap-Haïtien; Columbus was
forced to leave behind 39 men, founding the settlement of La Navidad.
Following the destruction of La Navidad by the local indigenous people,
Columbus moved to the eastern side of the island and established La
Isabela. One of the earliest leaders to fight off Spanish conquest was Queen
Anacaona, a princess of Xaragua who married Caonabo, the cacique of
Maguana. The couple resisted Spanish rule in vain; she was captured by the
Spanish and executed in front of her people. To this day, Anacaona is
revered in Haiti as one of the country's founders.
The Spaniards exploited the island for its gold, mined chiefly by local
Amerindians directed by the Spanish occupiers. Those refusing to work in the
mines were killed or sold into slavery. Europeans brought with them chronic
infectious diseases that were new to the Caribbean, to which the
indigenous population lacked immunity. These new diseases were the chief
cause of the dying off of the Taíno, but ill treatment, malnutrition, and a
drastic drop in the birthrate as a result of societal disruption also
contributed. The first recorded smallpox outbreak in the Americas occurred
on Hispaniola in 1507.
The Laws of Burgos, 1512–1513, were the first nationally codified set of laws'
governing the behaviour of Spanish settlers in America, particularly with
regards to native Indians. They forbade the maltreatment of natives, and
endorsed their conversion to Catholicism. The national government of Spain
found it difficult to enforce these laws in a distant colony.
The Spanish governors began importing enslaved Africans for labour. In
1517, Charles V authorised the draft of slaves. The Taínos became virtually,
but not completely, extinct on the island of Hispaniola. Some who evaded
capture fled to the mountains and established independent settlements.
Survivors mixed with escaped African slaves (runaways called maroons)
and produced a multiracial generation called zambos. French settlers later
called people of mixed African and Amerindian ancestry marabou. The
mestizo were children born to relationships between native women and
European – usually Spanish – men. During French rule, children of mixed race,
usually born of unions between African women and European men, were
called mulâtres. Creoles are a mixture of European, Amerindian, and
African ancestry regardless of skin colour.
As a gateway to the Caribbean, Hispaniola became a haven for pirates. The
western part of the island was settled by French buccaneers. Among them
was Bertrand d'Ogeron, who succeeded in growing tobacco. His success
prompted many of the numerous buccaneers and freebooters to turn into
settlers. This population did not submit to Spanish royal authority until the
year 1660 and caused a number of conflicts. By 1640, the buccaneers of
Tortuga were calling themselves the Brethren of the Coast. French pirate
Jean Lafitte, who operated in New Orleans and Galveston, was born in
Port-au-Prince around 1782.
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, who might have been born in St Marc, Saint-
Domingue in 1745 and established a fur trading post at present-day
Chicago, Illinois. John James Audubon, the renowned ornithologist and
painter, was born in 1785 in Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue and painted,
catalogued and described the birds of North America.
In 1779 more than 500 volunteers from Saint-Domingue, under the command
of Comte d'Estaing, fought alongside American colonial troops against the
British in the Siege of Savannah, one of the most significant foreign
contributions to the American Revolutionary War.
17th century settlement
Bertrand d'Orgeron attracted many colonists from Martinique and
Guadeloupe, such as the Roy family (Jean Roy, 1625–1707); Hebert (Jean
Hebert, 1624, with his family) and Barre (Guillaume Barre, 1642, with his
family). They and others were driven from their lands when more land was
needed for the extension of the sugar plantations. From 1670 to 1690, a drop
in the tobacco markets affected the island and significantly reduced the
number of settlers.
The first windmill for processing sugar was created in 1685.
2010 Earthquake (new page)
Haitian Revolution (new page)
Since 1915
Printables & Downloads
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Alphabet
Bible
Colour & Activity
Contact
Crafts
Curriculum
Calendar
Dolch Words
Freebies
Gallery
Games
Health
Homeschooling
Kids Fun Pages
Language
Links
Maths
Menus4Moms
Nursery Rhymes
Parents
Phonics
Pre-K
Services
Site Map
South Africa
Spelling
Surfnet Kids
Teens
Themes
WAHM
Thanks, references, Further Reading & Resources
Poster of the Haiti Earthquake of 12 January 2010 - Magnitude 7.0 JPG
Poster of the Haiti Earthquake of 12 January 2010 - Magnitude 7.0 PDF
Wikipedia
Totally Explained
USGS
Poster of the Haiti Earthquake of 12 January 2010 - Magnitude 7.0 JPG
Poster of the Haiti Earthquake of 12 January 2010 - Magnitude 7.0 PDF
Wikipedia
Totally Explained
USGS