Antoine Chanlatte was a free-colored military officer of the West Province who commanded the Legion de l'Egalité at the center of the commissioners' republican coalition in 1793.
He rallied men of color against the Port-au-Prince planter faction, led the defense of Cap-Français against Admiral Galbaud's forces alongside Jean-Baptiste Belley, and later retreated with the commissioners to Jacmel. Paul Louverture defeated him at the Nizao River in 1801, marking the end of his role in the revolutionary struggles.
In the ScholarshipHow historians have read this figure.
How historians and scholars have interpreted this figure across different analytical traditions.
Dubois's Avengers of the New World places Antoine Chanlatte within the complex military and political landscape of the western province during the commissioner era — a free-colored officer whose allegiances tracked the shifting fortunes of the republican cause against both royalists and the British occupation. Chanlatte's career exemplifies the pattern Dubois identifies among the free-colored military leadership: trained in the pre-revolutionary colonial militia, radicalized by the revolutionary moment, and navigating a political landscape where the republic's promises of citizenship were contingent on military service. His position in the western province during the years of maximal instability places him at the intersection of the commissioner-era emancipation politics and the ongoing war for control of Saint-Domingue.
Chanlatte's military career exemplifies the free-colored officer's position in the commissioner era — republican allegiance navigated through a landscape where citizenship was contingent on military service.
TimelineAcross the historical record.
- 1793
Colonel, Legion de l'Egalité
Commanded the commissioners' free-colored republican force; led defense of Cap-Français during Galbaud's revolt
- 1793-04-12
Siege And Fall Of Port Au Prince April 1793
Commanded republican forces after the fall of Port-au-Prince; led the Legion de l'Egalité
- 1793-06-20
Burning of Cap-Français, June 1793
Led the republican defense against Galbaud's forces and urged the commissioners' retreat to Haut-du-Cap
RelationshipsPeople connected to this life.
- Allied withPierre Pinchinat
Fellow free-colored officer in the commissioner coalition
- OpposedPaul Louverture
Defeated by Paul Louverture at the Nizao River in 1801
- Allied withJean-Baptiste Belley
Served alongside Belley in the defense of Cap-Français during Galbaud's revolt
- Related toJuste Chanlatte
Related political and military figure from the Chanlatte family line