Robert Debs Heinl (1916–1979)

I read this in its entirety over 25 years ago while living in Haiti in 1994. The venerable Dr. William Hodges., lent it to me with trepidation, informing me that it was the best history of Haiti written in English. I recently purchased the original version, even though a more up to date edition exists. It ends with the Duvalier era. It starts with the arrival of Columbus on the shores of HIspaniola. Before it was vogue to refer to what the Spanish did to the Taino as genocide, Heinl and Heinl were clear that it was nothing less. The story of the Haitian people is frustrating on all levels. The island was repopulated by the French with hundreds of thousands of African slaves. The descendants of these slaves conducted the first successful slave revolt in the history of mankind and became the second European colony to attain independence in the Western Hemisphere. This tiny island and its oppressed inhabitants cost Napolean more dead soldiers than he earned at Waterloo. Nonetheless, no one would recognize Haiti except the newly independent Greeks but they could not help. In addition, this isolated and ostracized country seemed unable to help themselves either. Revolution and coup and civil war have been the constant cycle of Haitian history. Eventually, the Americans took over from 1915-1934 but were unable to alter the political culture. "Written in Blood" is a riveting narrative, sympathetic yet unedited history of a culturally rich, economically poor, politically violent and religiously superstitious country. I will be reading this a second time before the end of this year so I will hopefully be able to give a more detailed review. If you read this, prepare for a long haul. It is thick with detail and nearly 700 pages so while fascinating, it is a commitment. Lastly, you might consider the more recent edition which brings the history up to 1995, therefore covering the military coop of 1993 and the American reinstatement of Bertrand Aristide.… (mais)