Alexandre Pétion
Alexandre Pétion | |
|---|---|
Lithograph portrait of Alexandre Pétion | |
| 1st President of Haiti | |
| In office 10 March 1807 – 29 March 1818 | |
| Preceded by |
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| Succeeded by | Jean-Pierre Boyer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anne Alexandre Sabès 2 April 1770 |
| Died | 29 March 1818 (aged 47) |
| Spouse | Marie-Madeleine Lachenais |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | French First Republic First Empire of Haiti Republic of Haiti |
| Branch | French Revolutionary Army Indigenous Army Haitian Army |
| Service years | 1791–1803 |
| Rank | General |
| Conflicts | Haitian Revolution |
Alexandre Sabès Pétion (French pronunciation: [alɛksɑ̃dʁ sabɛs petjɔ̃]; 2 April 1770 – 29 March 1818) was a Haitian army officer and statesman who served as the first president of the Republic of Haiti from 1807 until his death in 1818. One of Haiti's founding fathers, Pétion belonged to the revolutionary quartet that also includes Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, and his later rival Henri Christophe. Regarded as an excellent artilleryman in his early adulthood, Pétion would distinguish himself as an esteemed military commander with experience leading both French and Haitian troops. The 1802 coalition formed by him and Dessalines against French forces led by Charles Leclerc would prove to be a watershed moment in the decade-long conflict, eventually culminating in the decisive Haitian victory at the Battle of Vertières in 1803.