Cocherelle. Toussaint’s family gathered here, covered by Morisset; later abandoned.

General Rochambeau had already reached the gorge called the Ravine-à-Couleuvre. This defile leaves the Coupe-à-l’Inde on the left and the Bayonnet on the right. Setting out from Saint-Michel, he had crossed Platana and Mamont and had halted at Barade, at the entrance of the defile on the mountain side, on 3 Ventôse (22 February). It was time for Toussaint to march against him. The former governor entrusted the command of Les Gonaïves to General Vernet and left under his orders the 2nd battalion of the 7th, the corps of the Red Jackets, and a squadron of his guard commanded by Morisset. Vernet, a man of color, had instructions to fight the French to the last, to halt their march, and to set fire to the town if he found himself forced to fall back before the multitude of the enemy’s forces. Toussaint sent Dessalines, who was at Saint-Marc, the order to burn that town, as well as Les Verrettes, and to withdraw to Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite. He placed two companies of dragoons on watch in front of Les Gonaïves; and to cover Cocherelle, a plantation on the road to the Savane Désolée, where his wife, Isaac his son, his sisters, and the Chancy young ladies, his nieces, were gathered, he ordered Morisset to occupy the approaches to the plantation at the head of a squadron. He left Cocherelle at noon with 600 men of his guard, 200 of them dragoons under the orders of Monpoint and 400 foot soldiers commanded by Magny. From Cocherelle to the Ravine-à-Couleuvre is three leagues; the road is good and level. Toussaint, who wished to occupy the gorge by which Rochambeau was to come out into the plain, quickened the march of his troops, crossed the stream of Lacroix, and at nightfall reached the entrance of the Ravine. He distributed provisions and fresh meat to his soldiers and let them rest until nine o’clock at night. It was 22 February. At ten o’clock, after saying his prayer, he ordered all the fires of the camp put out and entered the gorge. The Ravine-à-Couleuvre, in the commune of Les Gonaïves, is a very arid defile which, crossing the district called Lacroix, opens to the southeast onto the Savane Désolée. Toward the end of the gorge, at the spot where the Mamont road ends, rises the morne Barade, which commands the defile along its whole length and is impregnable by its natural fortifications. Toussaint Louverture hastened his march through the night to occupy this point, entrench himself there, and wait for Rochambeau’s division, which he hoped to exterminate as soon as it had entered the gorge. At eleven o’clock he was heard to cry out, crossing himself: Almighty God! grant me the grace to reach that position before the enemy; half an hour’s march more. But Rochambeau, guided by an Indigenous man named Noël Lory, already held Barade, as we have seen. His division, 2,000 warriors strong, superb and intrepid, was composed of a regiment of the line and the 5th light, commanded by Colonel Rey. He had under his orders General of brigade Brunet and the adjudants-commandants Lavalette and Andrieux. Toussaint had only 1,600 men to set against him, including the armed cultivators who accompanied him. The French had suffered no privation, and in the districts they had crossed, from Saint-Michel to Barade, they had found shade, rivers, fruit and provisions in abundance.