The Black Jacobins

"The Black Jacobins" is a historical account of the Haitian Revolution written by Trinidadian intellectual C. L. R. James, first published in 1938. It traces the 1791–1804 revolt of enslaved people against French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue, focusing on the leadership of Toussaint Louverture.

The title refers to the connection James draws between the Haitian revolutionaries and the radical Jacobin faction of the French Revolution. He argues that the enslaved people of Saint-Domingue took the ideals of liberty and equality further than the French revolutionaries themselves were willing to go.

Yes, James published a revised and expanded edition in 1963, adding material that reflected on post-World War II anti-colonial movements in Africa and the Caribbean. The revised edition includes a new appendix discussing the legacy of the Haitian Revolution for African independence.

The book became a foundational text for anti-colonial and Pan-African movements in the mid-20th century, offering the Haitian Revolution as proof that enslaved and colonized people could organize, fight, and defeat a European imperial power. It influenced activists and intellectuals across the Caribbean and Africa during the era of decolonization.