Bois Caïman ceremony

E52011

The Bois Caïman ceremony was a pivotal Vodou gathering in 1791 where enslaved Africans in Saint-Domingue forged a spiritual and political pact that helped ignite the Haitian Revolution.


Statements (50)
Predicate Object
instanceOf Vodou ceremony
historical event
religious ceremony
associatedWithEthnicGroup Afro-Caribbean people
enslaved Africans in Saint-Domingue
associatedWithReligion Haitian Vodou
countryAtTime Saint-Domingue
hasApproximateDate 14 August 1791
hasCause French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue
brutal plantation conditions
system of slavery in Saint-Domingue
hasContext Haitian Revolution
hasDate August 1791
hasHistoriographicalDebate exact details of the ceremony
extent of Boukman’s role
precise location of the gathering
hasLanguageContext French
Kreyòl
West African languages
hasLeader Cécile Fatiman
Dutty Boukman
hasLocation Bois Caïman
near Le Cap
northern Saint-Domingue
hasOutcome beginning of 1791 slave insurrection in northern Saint-Domingue
ignition of the Haitian Revolution
oath of unity among enslaved rebels
planning of coordinated slave uprising
hasParticipant Vodou priestesses
Vodou priests
enslaved Africans
maroons
hasPoliticalAspect anti-slavery pact
call for revolt against French planters
formation of rebel leadership network
hasRitualElement Vodou prayers
animal sacrifice
oath-taking
spirit possession
hasSignificance key event in the struggle against slavery in the Americas
major symbol of Haitian national identity
symbolic founding moment of Haitian Revolution
hasSourceType colonial accounts
later Haitian historiography
oral tradition
isCommemoratedBy annual ceremonies in Haiti
isCommemoratedOn 14 August
isPartOf early phase of Haitian Revolution
preceded August 1791 slave uprising in the North Province of Saint-Domingue
presentDayLocation Haiti

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Dutty Boukman
notableEvent
Haitian Revolution
startEvent

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