Crête-à-Pierrot. Small fort abandoned 22 March; great fort bombarded 22 to 24 March

From 1 to 3 Germinal (22 to 24 March) the great and the small fort were vigorously cannonaded and bombarded. Colonel Jean-Baptiste Louverture was killed by a blast of grapeshot. The Indigenous artillery could not contend with the superiority of the French guns. The small fort, open on every side, could no longer be held. Lamartinière abandoned it on the night of the 22nd and withdrew with 150 men into the great fort, bringing confidence and enthusiasm with him. The ramparts of this last fortification were destroyed as well; there was no shelter left against the cannonballs; as food and ammunition began to fail, the garrison ate horseflesh, and stones took the place of bullets. Lamartinière announced to his companions the resolve he had taken to bury himself beneath the ruins of the Crête. This energetic resolution was greeted with enthusiasm by these brave men, who struck up hymns of liberty.