Julia Gaffield

Haitian Connections in the Atlantic World: Recognition after Revolution Julia Gaffield

Commendation Quotes: Timely and compelling, "Haitian Connections in the Atlantic World" is on the leading edge of a new wave of Haitian Revolution scholarship. Eschewing platitudes about Haiti's enforced isolation after the revolution, Gaffield traces the complex history--and legacies--of an Atlantic World variably confronting, evading, ignoring, and interacting with the new Haitian state.--Ada Ferrer, New York University Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.; On January 1, 1804, Haiti shocked the world by declaring independence. Historians have long portrayed Haiti's postrevolutionary period as one during which the international community rejected Haiti's Declaration of Independence and adopted a policy of isolation designed to contain the impact of the world's only successful slave revolution. Julia Gaffield, however, anchors a fresh vision of Haiti's first tentative years of independence to its relationships with other nations and empires and reveals the surprising limits of the country's supposed isolation--; Provided by publisher. Brief Description: "On January 1, 1804, Haiti shocked the world by declaring independence. Historians have long portrayed Haiti's postrevolutionary period as one during which the international community rejected Haiti's Declaration of Independence and adopted a policy of isolation designed to contain the impact of the world's only successful slave revolution. Julia Gaffield, however, anchors a fresh vision of Haiti's first tentative years of independence to its relationships with other nations and empires and reveals the surprising limits of the country's supposed isolation"--Commendation Quotes: A pioneering work on early republic Haiti. Taking a global approach and treating all of the major powers that controlled trade and colonial enterprise in the period, Julia Gaffield not only debunks the myth of Haitian isolationism but also demonstrates Haiti's connectedness and importance to the rest of the world in spite of the radical and transformative circumstances that created the republic.--Matthew J. Smith, University of the West Indies, Mona Publisher Marketing: On January 1, 1804, Haiti shocked the world by declaring independence. Historians have long portrayed Haiti's postrevolutionary period as one during which the international community rejected Haiti's Declaration of Independence and adopted a policy of isolation designed to contain the impact of the world's only successful slave revolution. Julia Gaffield, however, anchors a fresh vision of Haiti's first tentative years of independence to its relationships with other nations and empires and reveals the surprising limits of the country's supposed isolation. Gaffield frames Haitian independence as both a practical and an intellectual challenge to powerful ideologies of racial hierarchy and slavery, national sovereignty, and trade practice. Yet that very independence offered a new arena in which imperial powers competed for advantages with respect to military strategy, economic expansion, and international law. In dealing with such concerns, foreign governments, merchants, abolitionists, and others provided openings that were seized by early Haitian leaders who were eager to negotiate new economic and political relationships. Although full political acceptance was slow to come, economic recognition was extended by degrees to Haiti--and this had diplomatic implications. Gaffield's account of Haitian history highlights how this layered recognition sustained Haitian independence.