1802 (The Price of Liberty): Henry Christophe informed General Hardy that the Haytian people were prepared to face any extremity rather than see their hard-w…

1802 (The Price of Liberty): Henry Christophe informed General Hardy that the Haytian people were prepared to face any extremity rather than see their hard-won liberty revoked. He expressed a deep skepticism toward French promises of brotherhood, noting that the arrival of a massive military force was a strange way to signal “pacific intentions.” Christophe highlighted that the scorched-earth policy he threatened—leaving only ruins for the French to occupy—was a necessary consequence of defending his people’s freedom. He concluded that his personal honor and the safety of his soldiers were inseparable from the cause of independence. This stance demonstrated that the Haytian leadership viewed the conflict as an existential struggle for the “African race.”