History of the Haitian Flag of Independence

by Odette Roy Fombrun

What was the design of the “original” Haitian flag? What exactly were its origins and the circumstances of its adoption? What flags were actually used in the revolutionary years leading to General Jean-Jacques Dessalines’ proclamation of the Republic in 1804? This study by the Haitian scholar and educator Odette Roy Fombrun explores these questions, symbolically significant in Haitian society and long the subject of debate, in light of the historical record. She quotes extensively from eyewitness sources and later historical accounts published only in French and long out of print.

An English translation of the second French edition of Mme. Fombrun’s book, published in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in 1986, was commissioned by the Flag Heritage Foundation. The Foundation is pleased to make the work available for the first time in English, along with a new preface and notes, and a specially redrawn flag chart in color. The books are 48 pages long, measure 8½ x 11 inches, and weigh 6½ ounces each in soft covers. Nicole Jean-Louis’ painting Making of the Haitian Flag (2012), seen below, is reproduced on the back cover with her permission.

This publication may be read, printed out, and downloaded free here.  Following the author’s wish, copies of the book are offered at a specially subsidized price of $1 each, plus postage. To order, please e-mail the Foundation. Payment instructions will be contained in his reply.