Dessalines publicly promised independence and total expulsion of whites

Evidence

“Take courage, I tell you, take courage,” Dessalines commanded. “The whites from France cannot hold out against us here in Saint-Domingue. They will fight well at first, but soon they will fall sick and die like flies.” He warned them not to misunderstand some of the actions he might take along the way to the ultimate defeat of the French. “Listen well! If Dessalines surrenders to them a hundred times, he will betray them a hundred times.” They would see that “when the French are reduced to small, small numbers, we will harass them and beat them; we will burn the harvests and then take to the hills. They will be forced to leave.” “Then,” announced Dessalines, “I will make you independent. There will be no more whites among us.” — Dubois, Laurent, Avengers of the New World_ The Story of…, 968

Categorization

• XREF: Directly anticipates the 1804 independence and the massacre of whites, the eventual climax of this book’s arc.
• DEEPTHINKING: Shows an insurgency leader openly strategizing attrition by climate, feigned surrender, and scorched-earth retreat—a rare primary window into rebel decision-making.