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Haiti Got it's independence by a slave revolution. It was Lead by Jean-Jacques Dessalines.

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Two months after his defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte's colonial forces, Jean-Jacques Dessalines proclaims the independence of Saint-Domingue, renaming it Haiti after its original Arawak name.

In 1791, a revolt erupted on the French colony, and Toussaint Louverture, a formerly enslaved man, took control of the rebels. Gifted with natural military genius, Toussaint organized an effective guerrilla war against the island's colonial population. He found able generals in two other formerly enslaved men, Dessalines and Henri Christophe, and in 1795 he made peace with revolutionary France following its abolishment of slavery. Toussaint became governor-general of the colony and in 1801 conquered the Spanish portion of island, freeing the enslaved peoples there.

In January 1802, an invasion force ordered by Napoleon landed on Saint-Domingue, and after several months of furious fighting, Toussaint agreed to a cease-fire. He retired to his plantation but in 1803 was arrested and taken to a dungeon in the French Alps, where he was tortured and died in April.

Soon after Toussaint's arrest, Napoleon announced his intention to reintroduce slavery on Haiti, and Dessalines led a new revolt against French rule. With the aid of the British, the rebels scored a major victory against the French force there, and on November 9, 1803, colonial authorities surrendered. In 1804, General Dessalines assumed dictatorial power, and Haiti became the second independent nation in the Americas. Later that year, Dessalines proclaimed himself Emperor Jacques I. He was killed putting down a revolt two years later.

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Haitian independence proclaimed | January 1, 1804 | HISTORY

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Two months after his defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte's colonial forces, Jean-Jacques Dessalines proclaims the independence of Saint-Domingue, renaming it Haiti after its original Arawak name. In 1791, a revolt erupted on the French colony, and Toussaint Louverture, a formerly enslaved man, took control of the rebels.

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Haiti Impressionism Art After Independence

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Haiti Impressionism Art After Independence

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500,000 Slaves rose up against their occupants. The leader himself was also a slave.

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Article on The Mexican War For Independence

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Article on The Mexican War For Independence

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The Mexican war for independence was led by the Creoles. They wanted the ability to lead themselves.

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Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest, launches the Mexican War of Independence with the issuing of his Grito de Dolores, or "Cry of Dolores." The revolutionary tract, so-named because it was publicly read by Hidalgo in the town of Dolores, called for the end of 300 years of Spanish rule in Mexico, redistribution of land and racial equality. Thousands of Indians and mestizos flocked to Hidalgo's banner of the Virgin of Guadalupe, and soon the peasant army was on the march to Mexico City.

In the early 19th century, Napoleon 's occupation of Spain led to the outbreak of revolts all across Spanish America. Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla-"the father of Mexican independence"-launched the Mexican rebellion with his "Cry of Dolores," and his populist army came close to capturing the Mexican capital. Defeated at Calderón in January 1811, he fled north but was captured and executed. He was followed by other peasant leaders, however, such as José María Morelos y Pavón, Mariano Matamoros, and Vicente Guerrero, who all led armies of native and racially mixed revolutionaries against the Spanish and the Royalists.

Ironically, it was the Royalists-made up of Mexicans of Spanish descent and other conservatives-who ultimately brought about independence. In 1820, liberals took power in Spain, and the new government promised reforms to appease the Mexican revolutionaries. In response, Mexican conservatives called for independence as a means of maintaining their privileged position in Mexican society.

In early 1821, Agustín de Iturbide, the leader of the Royalist forces, negotiated the Plan of Iguala with Vicente Guerrero. Under the plan, Mexico would be established as an independent constitutional monarchy, the privileged position of the Catholic Church would be maintained, and Mexicans of Spanish descent would be regarded as equal to pure Spaniards. Mexicans of mixed or pure Indian blood would have lesser rights.

Iturbide defeated the Royalist forces still opposed to independence, and the new Spanish viceroy, lacking money, provisions, and troops, was forced to accept Mexican independence. On August 24, 1821, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba, which approves a plan to make Mexico an independent constitutional monarchy. In 1822, as no Bourbon monarch to rule Mexico had been found, Iturbide was proclaimed the emperor of Mexico. However, his empire was short-lived, and in 1823 republican leaders Santa Anna and Guadalupe Victoria deposed Iturbide and set up a republic, with Guadalupe Victoria as its first president.

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Mexican War of Independence begins | September 16, 1810 | HISTORY

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Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest, launches the Mexican War of Independence with the issuing of his Grito de Dolores, or "Cry of Dolores." The revolutionary tract, so-named because it was publicly read by Hidalgo in the town of Dolores, called for the end of 300 years of Spanish rule in Mexico, redistribution of [...]

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Mexican Romanticism Art After Independence

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Mexican Romanticism Art After Independence

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The war had multiple battles of a fairly large size. When the war took place there were many loyalists still in the country.

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Mexican War of Independence | 3 Minute History

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Article On Reunification Of Germany 1871

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Article On Reunification Of Germany 1871

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Germany was reunified by Otto through many wars with other Nations. 2 of these countries were Austria, and France.

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Otto von Bismarck, often referred to as the "Iron Chancellor," was the mastermind behind the unification of Germany. Through strategic diplomacy and nationalistic fervour, Bismarck paved the way for the birth of a united German nation.

With its newfound unity, Germany rapidly emerged as a formidable force in Europe. Bolstered by its industrial prowess, economic growth, and a powerful military, the nation exerted its influence on the global stage.

Under his leadership, the German Empire was formed, ending centuries of fragmentation. The symbolic significance of the unification ceremony cannot be understated. By deliberately choosing the Palace of Versailles, located outside Paris, as the venue instead of Berlin, Bismarck sent a powerful message. This decision represented a bold statement of military might and conquest, foreshadowing Germany's ambitions and its trajectory as a dominant European power throughout the first half of the 20th century.

Otto von Bismarck's legacy as the architect of German unification would shape not only the country's trajectory but also the geopolitical landscape of Europe for years to come.

A motley collection of states

Before 1871 Germany had always been a motley collection of states sharing little more than a common language.

Over 300 distinct states existed within the region, each differing in customs, systems of rule, and even religion. Unification seemed improbable and was often dismissed, much like the contemporary notion of a United States of Europe. However, the vision and determination of Otto von Bismarck would change the course of history.

As the 19th century progressed, a wave of nationalism began to sweep through Germany. The defeat of Napoleon by several German states played a significant role in fueling this nationalistic fervor. Initially, the call for unity was championed by students and middle-class liberal intellectuals who emphasised the importance of a shared language and a somewhat tenuous common history as unifying factors.

Few people took much notice beyond a few mildly nationalistic festivals, and the fact that the movement was confined to intellectuals was illustrated poignantly in the European revolutions of 1848, where a brief stab at a national German parliament quickly fizzled out and this attempted Reichstag never held much political power.

After this, it seemed that German unification was no nearer to happening than ever. The kings, princes and dukes of the German states, typically opposed to unification for obvious reasons, generally retained their power.

The power of Prussia

The power balance of the German states was important, for if one was ever more powerful than the others put together, then it might attempt conquest of intimidation. By 1848 Prussia, a conservative and militaristic kingdom in the east of Germany, had been the strongest of the states for a century.

However, it was restrained by the combined strength of the other states, and, more importantly, by the influence of the neighbouring Austrian Empire, which would not allow any German state to have too much power and become a possible rival.

After a brief flirtation with revolution in 1848, the Austrians had restored order and the status quo, humiliating Prussia in the process. When the formidable statesman von Bismarck was appointed Minister-President of that country in 1862, he aimed to restore Prussia as a great European power.

After effectively taking command of the country unconstitutionally, he vastly improved the military for which Prussia would become famous. Bismarck harnessed the aspirations of the German people and united them under a singular cause.

The defeat of Austria in the Seven Weeks' War

The war that followed in 1866 was a resounding Prussian victory which radically changed a European political landscape which had remained virtually the same since the defeat of Napoleon.

Many of Prussia's rival states had joined Austria and been cowed and defeated, and the Empire then turned its attentions away from Germany in order to restore some of its severely battered prestige. The ethnic tensions that this move created would later kick-start World War One.

Prussia, meanwhile, was able to form the other beaten states in North Germany into a coalition which was effectively the beginnings of a Prussian Empire. Bismarck had masterminded the whole business and now reigned supreme - and though not a natural nationalist he was now seeing the potential of a fully united Germany ruled by Prussia.

This was a far cry from the heady dreams of the earlier intellectuals, but, as Bismarck famously said, unification would have to be achieved, if it was to be achieved, by "blood and iron."

He knew, however, that he could not rule a united country dogged by infighting. The south remained unconquered and the north was only tenuously under his control. It would take a war against a foreign and historic enemy to unite Germany, and the one that he had in mind was particularly hated across Germany after Napoleon's wars.

The Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71

France was ruled at this point by the great man's nephew, Napoleon III, who did not have his uncle's brilliance or military skill.

Through a series of clever diplomatic tactics Bismarck was able to provoke Napoleon into declaring war on Prussia, and this seemingly aggressive move on France's part kept the other European powers such as Britain from joining her side.

It also created a furious anti-French feeling across Germany, and when Bismarck moved Prussia's armies into position, they were joined - for the first time in history - by men from every other German state. The following war was devastating for the French.

The large and well trained German armies won many victories - most notably at Sedan in September 1870, a defeat which persuaded Napoleon to resign and live out the last miserable year of his life in exile in England. The war did not end there however, and the French fought on without their Emperor.

A few weeks after Sedan, Paris was under siege, and the war only ended when it fell in late January 1871. In the meantime, Bismarck had gathered the German generals princes and Kings at Versailles and proclaimed the new and ominously powerful country of Germany, changing the political landscape of Europe.

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Otto von Bismarck: Architect of German Unification

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Otto von Bismarck, often referred to as the "Iron Chancellor," was the mastermind behind the unification of Germany. Through strategic...

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Reunification of Germany under Otto Von Bismarck

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Reunification of Germany under Otto Von Bismarck

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Otto Von Bismarck became ruler through his Iron fist. Bravery was valued very highly in Germany.