Due to peculiar circumstances then prevailing in Haiti whatever information there exists about oldtime Haitian armed forces prior to their disbandment in 1915 is of fragmentary nature and, at times, highly inexact, questionable and contradictory.

Their origin harks back to 1794 when Toussaint L'Ouverture organised his horde of armed plantation slaves and other assorted volunteers into a sort of local French Colonial Army of 10 Demi-Brigades [also referred to as Regiments] of 1,600 infantrymen each and two Regiments of Cavalry of unknown strength. It is probable that this force included Corps mentioned as Negro Fifth and Ninth Regiments, a 1,500 strong Regiment of Henri Christophe [later to proclaim himself the Emperor of Haiti], the all Negro 7th Colonial Brigade and the 8th Colonial Regiment.

Sometime during this period an all Mulatto Corps of Equality under General Montbrun and a Honor Guard commanded by Dessalines existed too. Toussaint L'Ouverture's bodyguard of Dragoons, or rather Cuirassiers, possibly identical with the last-mentioned Honor Guard, appeared in 1798 [?], to be followed soon thereafter by 2 Regiments of Guard, these of 1,000 all ranks in each, of Infantry and Cavalry respectively some of whose personnel, including the German band, were Whites. This Guard is reputed as having been clad in sky blue uniforms.

Finally, 1,500 French infantry and 400 Dragoons are supposed to have existed, apart from the other local troops in 1802, to be followed one year later by 500 Polish and some German deserters from the French Expeditionary Corps of General Leclerc, [Napoleon's brother in law]. Some of these troops manned barges which comprised the embryonic navy.

The Haitian Army reached its highest numbers during the rule of Henri Christophe when its Regulars, including a resplendently clothed Imperial Guard, amounted to 42,250 all ranks and the Militias numbered 68,095 effectives. With his downfall the number of the former went down to about 16,000 while the latter were entirely abolished.

Some Europeans instructed the Artillery while 6 galliots with a naval force of 500 all ranks comprised the Navy. One might safely assume that with the passing of time the number of military personnel gradually diminished, contrary to overblown reports proffered by some historians and that the Army totals of 1,826 for 1867 more or less correspond with the truth. With chaotic administrative conditions prevailing over the entire period no "Order of Battle" appears and it is highly unlikely that any will ever be discovered.

A French source dating from the 1890's informs the reader that the Haitian Army of that time was being complemented partially through conscription [with a 7 years service], partially through voluntary enlistments for a 4 year period while another, less formal, but more truthtul source of those days simply states that because of abominable service conditions, a press gang method was resorted to.

The land forces comprised both Presidential Guard and the Army proper, with a total of 6,828 all ranks, of those the former counted no less than 10 General Officers [there existed many other bearers of this rank both in and outside the Army], an Artillery "Battalion" of 100 gunners, an Infantry "Regiment" of 300 all ranks, a Cavalry Squadron of 100 troopers and a "Battalion" of 150 Chasseurs, while the latter included 4 Battalions of Artillery 1,000 personnel, 6 Regiments of Infantry with a total of 3,200 and 1,978 Gendarmes of all ranks organized into 46 Companies. A set of unpublished sketches of Haitian military figures shows them wearing both French July Monarchy and 2nd Empire apparel, some of it in parlous condition.

A visitor to Haiti sometime prior to 1900 decries the Army as a ragged, out-starved rabble living by theft, scrounging, begging and performing all kinds of odd jobs, while off duty [which was for most of their time] in order to keep alive.

On a parade he witnessed some 2,000 troops including the Palace Band dressed in a mixture of red, blue and gold, a number of 250 all rank strong "Regiments" of Infantry dressed either in light blue jackets with red trousers and red & blue French Army caps or in blue jackets and red tasseled caps, while other foot contingents wore pink and green with yellow garnitures, all of these furnished with black leather accoutrements and red blankets. A number of mounted General Officers [he puts their total at 60] dressed in pink, green or blue uniforms, two Bodyguard Cavalry Regiments of about 200 [!] troopers in each, one wearing brass helmets, the other dressed in blue and termed "Mounted Chassuers", and as "supporting weapon" a single Artillery Battery of 5 guns and 1 Nordenfeldt mechanical machine gun, each of these pieces being drawn by a single mule.

Photos illustrating this report suggest individual use of outmoded uniform pieces including bicornes, frock coats, bearskins and busbies and wide spread use of white linen civilian garb. According to the same Leport small arms in use included different makes of muzzle-loaders or single-shot breechloaders and rusty bayonets and swords.

The Haitian Navy of the day presented, despite of its largely aging craft, a somewhat more serious picture, for its ships including the gunboats; "22 DECEMBRE" of 900 ft. built in 1860 and armed with our 4.7 in. [40 pounder] Armstrong guns, "1804" of 600 ft. built in 1879 and sporting six 4 in. Armstrong breech-loaders and one muzzle-loader, "SAINT MICHAEL" of 850 ft. and same vintage, carrying one 11 in. muzzle-loader and eight 4 in. Armstongs, "TOUSSAINT OUVERTURE" of 500 ft. built in 1886 and armed with one 6.3 in. [30 pounder] Canet breech-loader and two 4.7 in. [30 pounder] Canet auto-firer, plus the fairly recent [of 1893] "CAPOIE LA MORT" and "ALEXANDER PETION", (both of 256 feet and equipped with a 3.9 in. Canet and four Hotchkiss one-pounder quick-firers.

The iron Corvette "DESSALINES" of 1,200 ft. built in 1883 and carrying apart from a 3.9 Canet quick-firer, two Krupps of the same calibre and two 4.7 in. [30 pounder] Parrot guns.

Finally Haiti's newest craft [of 1895] was the gun vessel "CRETE A PIEROT" of 950 ft. equipped with one 6.3 in. one 4.7 in. and four 3.9 in. Canets. This latter ship was eventually sunk, in 1902 by the German Gunboat "Panther", and most of the remaining craft were discarded after 1912.

Following the U.S. Marine landing in the wake of the 1915 Haitian Revolution, both the operatic Army and the non-existent Navvy were disbanded.

SOUCES:

THIS GILDED AFRICAN "TOUSSAIINT L'ODVERTURE" by W.Parkinson, pub. by Quartet Books, London & N.Y. 1978.
THE HAITIAN REVOLUTION 1789-1804, by O. Thomas, pub. by University of Tennesse Press, 1973.
CITIZEN TOUSSAINT, by R. Korngold, pub. by Victor Gollancz Ltd, London, 1945.
FROM DESSALINES TO DUVALIER: RACE, COLOUR AND NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE IN HAITI, by D.Nicholls, pub. by Cambridge University Press, 1979.
WHERE BLACK RULES WHITE: A JOURNEY ACROSS AND ABOUT HAYTI, by R. Hasketh, pub. by Irish University [reprint].
CONWAY'S ALL THE WORLD'S FIGHTING SHIPS 1860-1905, pub. by Conway Maritime Press, Greenwich London, 1979.
LE GRANDE ENCYCLOPEDIE/INVENTAIRE RAISONNE DES SCIENCES, DES LETTRES ET DES ARTS, Tome 19, pub. by H.Lamirault & Co, Paris 1895.
ALLGEMEINE ENCYKLOPADIE DER WISSENSCHAFTEN UND KUNSTE, pub by Johann Friedrich Gleditsch, Leipzig, 1828.