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Code Henry

The first comprehensive legal code of the Kingdom of Haiti, promulgated by King Henry Christophe on February 20, 1812 — a sovereign act of juridical self-determination just eight years after the world's only successful slave revolution produced an independent nation. This digital edition presents the complete Code in 3,004 articles spanning 8 laws and 67 titres — from the Loi Civile's 1,535 articles on personhood, marriage, property, and succession, to the Loi sur la Procédure Criminelle's 421 articles on investigation, confrontation, and royal clemency. Every article has been hand-extracted from 19th-century OCR, corrected, translated into English, and annotated with plain-language life lessons and scholarly notes. Browse in French, English, or Kreyòl Ayisyen. 3,004 articles · 8 laws · 3 languages · 213 years restored

3,004 articles in the Code Henry

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411
Article 411 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la reconnaissance des écritures et signatures en matière criminelle
Criminal Procedure
Everything in the forgery chapter concerning witnesses shall be observed, under penalty of nullity.
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Everything in the forgery chapter concerning witnesses shall be observed, under penalty of nullity.

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412
Article 412 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la reconnaissance des écritures et signatures en matière criminelle
Criminal Procedure
In addition, everything prescribed by article 379 and following of the forgery chapter shall be followed, under the penalties therein stated.
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In addition, everything prescribed by article 379 and following of the forgery chapter shall be followed, under the penalties therein stated.

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413
Article 413 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Public prosecution and civil action against a crime carrying the death penalty, or other afflictive penalties, shall only be extinguished or prescribed after ten full...
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Public prosecution and civil action against a crime carrying the death penalty, or other afflictive penalties, shall only be extinguished or prescribed after ten full years, counting from the day the crime was committed, if no investigation or prosecution has been undertaken.

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414
Article 414 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
If within ten years, acts of prosecution or investigation have been undertaken without judgment, the prescription period restarts from the last act.
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If within ten years, acts of prosecution or investigation have been undertaken without judgment, the prescription period restarts from the last act.

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415
Article 415 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Correctional offenses prescribe in three years from the offense, or from the last investigative act if taken without judgment.
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Correctional offenses prescribe in three years from the offense, or from the last investigative act if taken without judgment.

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416
Article 416 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Simple police contraventions prescribe in one year from commission, or from the last act if proceedings were started without condemnation.
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Simple police contraventions prescribe in one year from commission, or from the last act if proceedings were started without condemnation.

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417
Article 417 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Criminal penalties prescribe after twenty years from execution, except for high treason, which never prescribes.
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Criminal penalties prescribe after twenty years from execution, except for high treason, which never prescribes.

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418
Article 418 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
The convicted person whose penalty has prescribed may not reside in the victim's province.
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The convicted person whose penalty has prescribed may not reside in the victim's province.

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419
Article 419 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Correctional penalties prescribe in five years from service of the final judgment or from when appeal is no longer available.
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Correctional penalties prescribe in five years from service of the final judgment or from when appeal is no longer available.

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420
Article 420 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Simple police penalties prescribe in three months from service of the judgment or from expiration of the appeal period.
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Simple police penalties prescribe in three months from service of the judgment or from expiration of the appeal period.

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421
Article 421 Law on Criminal Procedure · De la prescription
Criminal Procedure
Civil condemnation payment actions prescribe in three years for criminal/correctional matters from execution or service, and three months for simple police from service.
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Civil condemnation payment actions prescribe in three years for criminal/correctional matters from execution or service, and three months for simple police from service.

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1
Article 1 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Worker Protection
Owners and tenant farmers of lands are required to act toward agricultural workers as good heads of family, an obligation it is in their interest...
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Owners and tenant farmers of lands are required to act toward agricultural workers as good heads of family, an obligation it is in their interest to fulfill in its entirety.

It being the firm will of the King that, in cases of mistreatment by owners and tenant farmers toward agricultural workers, the King's lieutenant commanding the parish shall be required to receive the complaints brought to him by the agricultural workers; the grievances, duly verified and recognized by said King's lieutenant, shall be submitted to the general commanding the district, who shall inform the King's Privy Council, which shall rule on the complaint brought by the agricultural workers, and shall pronounce, if warranted, the penalty to be imposed on the owners and tenant farmers.

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2
Article 2 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Worker Protection
In cases where the complaint brought to the King's lieutenant by the agricultural worker has not been received by said King's lieutenant, the worker who...
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In cases where the complaint brought to the King's lieutenant by the agricultural worker has not been received by said King's lieutenant, the worker who has cause to complain is authorized to address himself directly to the general commanding the district; and in cases where the latter does not render him the justice he is owed, he shall address himself to the general commanding the division, and thence to the Privy Council.

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3
Article 3 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Worker Protection
No owner or tenant farmer may dismiss an agricultural worker from his plantation on grounds of illness or disability, the latter being entitled to remain...
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No owner or tenant farmer may dismiss an agricultural worker from his plantation on grounds of illness or disability, the latter being entitled to remain there as his place of residence.

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4
Article 4 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Healthcare
A hospital shall be established on each plantation, where sick agricultural workers shall be treated and medicated at the expense of the owners and tenant...
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A hospital shall be established on each plantation, where sick agricultural workers shall be treated and medicated at the expense of the owners and tenant farmers, who shall be required, to this end, to retain a health officer who shall visit the plantations twice per week.

There shall further be established, in the gardens of the plantation, in a suitable place removed from the main buildings, another hospital intended for the treatment of contagious diseases.

In addition to the health officer, there shall be a nurse and a midwife on each plantation, to watch over and care for the sick.

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5
Article 5 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Healthcare
Health officers shall be required to comply with the regulations of His Majesty, existing or forthcoming, concerning their profession.
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Health officers shall be required to comply with the regulations of His Majesty, existing or forthcoming, concerning their profession.

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6
Article 6 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Elder Care
Owners and tenant farmers are required to provide assistance and supply food to the elderly and infirm of their plantations who are unable to be...
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Owners and tenant farmers are required to provide assistance and supply food to the elderly and infirm of their plantations who are unable to be of any use to them, and to care for them and provide them with medicine.

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7
Article 7 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Labor Rights
Strict and most express prohibitions are imposed on owners and tenant farmers of lands against diverting agricultural workers from the plantations and farms to which...
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Strict and most express prohibitions are imposed on owners and tenant farmers of lands against diverting agricultural workers from the plantations and farms to which they are attached, to employ them on another plantation or in another type of cultivation, for whatever reason and under whatever pretext, without obtaining the permission of the King's Privy Council; which may only be granted when it has been established that the land they wish to abandon is exhausted and no longer capable of production.

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8
Article 8 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Military Discipline
Owners and tenant farmers present on their plantations, or in their absence their authorized agents, who are found to have harbored or enticed soldiers from...
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Owners and tenant farmers present on their plantations, or in their absence their authorized agents, who are found to have harbored or enticed soldiers from the army without requiring them to present their proper permits, and who within twenty-four hours have not reported this to the King's lieutenant, shall be punished according to Article 12 of the second section of the Military Penal Law concerning internal desertion.

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9
Article 9 Law Concerning Agriculture · Des Devoirs des Propriétaires et Fermiers
Labor Rights
Owners and tenant farmers are required to provide and replace the agricultural tools of their plantations when necessary; these tools shall be delivered to the...
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Owners and tenant farmers are required to provide and replace the agricultural tools of their plantations when necessary; these tools shall be delivered to the managers, who shall be responsible for them to the owners and tenant farmers.