The National Party (Parti National; PN) was an economically nationalist majority Black Haitian political party in Haiti. It was founded in the early 1870s by Septimus Rameau during a time of political reorganization following the civil war of the 1860s. They stood in direct opposition to the Liberal Party, which was dominated by the Mulatto elite. Both of these parties are considered as the nation's first modern and nationwide political parties.
During its early years, the National Party struggled, as its rival, the Liberal Party, held a commanding majority in parliament during the presidency of Nissage Saget (1869–1874). However, the National Party managed to undermine their dominance through strategic politicking, including a parliamentary boycott. This allowed the Nationals' candidate, Michel Domingue, to become president in 1874. Domingue's presidency was largely ceremonial, and real power laid with his nephew, Rameau. As Domingue's administration became increasingly despotic, many Liberals fled the country.
In 1876, these exiled Liberals mounted a successful invasion in Jacmel to reclaim control, overthrowing President Domingue and installing Boisrond-Canal as provisional president. Canal would later assume full presidential authority. The Liberal Party soon split into two: the "Canalistes" who supported President Canal and the "Bazelaisistes" who supported Jean-Pierre Boyer Bazelais, one of the founders of the Liberal Party. This infighting proved disastrous and allowed the Nationals to regain power with the election of Lysius Salomon in 1879.
Under Salomon's leadership, the Nationals reached the height of their influence and dominated until 1888, surviving many violent attempts to oust them, including the Liberal Insurrection of 1883, during which Boyer-Bazelais was killed.
After Salomon's term was extended through a constitutional amendment, widespread unrest led to a separatist movement in the north, led by General Seide Thelemanque. Salomon resigned under pressure, and F.D. Légitime assumed control of the south. When Thelemanque died, Florvil Hyppolite succeeded him and eventually led a rebellion to reunify Haiti in 1889. Although Hyppolite had fought with National backing, he declared himself a Liberal by the time he assumed office, making the divisions increasingly blurry and irrelevant.
Ultimately, there is no consensus among Haitian writers on whether or not the Liberal Party and the National Party truly survived the deaths of their respective leaders – Boyer-Bazelais in 1883 and Salomon in 1888.
Ideology The Nationals, also known as Nationalists, was predominantly associated with the Black Haitian majority and promoted a program of economic nationalism. They opposed the traditional domination of the Mulatto elite and the elitism of the Liberals. As historian David Nicholls argues, the rivalry between the National Party and the Liberal Party was fundamentally rooted in racial divisions. Poet Emmanuel Edouard articulated these tensions, stating: "Every Haitian knows that in Haiti the words 'Liberal Party' signify 'Mulatto party,' [a] party which desires the preponderance of mulattoes in the government of the country... Everyone knows that the words 'National Party' mean 'black party,' [a] party which desires... the preponderance of blacks, the immense majority of Haitians, in the conduct of public affairs." Within the National Party, Nicholls identifies a faction known as the noiristes, sometimes called "ultranationals" or piquets doctrinaires. This group, led by intellectuals such as Louis Joseph Janvier, aimed to reintrepret Haitian history through a "Black" lens, pinning the country's struggles on the selfishness of Mulatto politicians, who they argued prioritized their own interests over national unity, and to the weakness of black leaders, who engaged in la politique de doublure (serving as figureheads while others held real power).
However, critics of Nicholls' analysis, such as historian Chelsea Stieber, argue that this characterization imposes a teleological framework that distorts historical reality. They assert that Nicholls' association of the Nationals with noiriste ideology and the Liberals with Mulatto elites projects the color-centric politics of the 20th century, particularly the Duvalier era, backward onto the 19th century. According to Stieber, the term "noiriste" itself does not appear in the discourse of the time.
Despite being predominantly Black, the National Party retained an elitist character, representing the interests of the rural Black landowning class. Its membership composed of a coalition of landowners, planters, military leaders, and intellectuals—the rural bourgeoisie of Haiti. While these Black elites had interests distinct from the broader impoverished masses, they still relied on their support to further their political ambitions. To garner such support, they appealed directly to them by emphasizing racial solidarity and framing the struggle as one of blacks against the dominance of the mulatto elite. They used the color issue as a unifying rallying point, best encapsulated by their motto "The greatest good for the greatest number".
The association of the Nationals with Noirism—an ideology focused on the empowerement of Haiti's Black majority and promotion of African heritage—as argued by later 20th-century Noirist writers, is subject to debate. Noirist writers like Ulrich Saint Louis and Leslie Manigat argue that the National Party "advocated the reconnecting of Haiti to a black civilization". In other words, "the return of Haiti to Africa", but Nicholls disputes this. He contends that prominent Nationals, including Lysius Salomon, aimed to align Haiti culturally and politically with European civilization, particularly the French model.
Salomon reportedly expressed these sentiments to the French minister in Port-au-Prince, stating, "Our origin, our language, our instincts incline us towards you; it is France—honest, loyal, and generous—whom we prefer to all the other nations."
This eurocentric view was further echoed by National intellectuals such as Louis-Joseph Janvie, who supported the idea of borrowing the legal and constitutional frameworks of the British and the French rather than from the African traditions. Similarly, Demesvar Delorme, a leader of the Nationals, reportedly expressed to Salomon the party's ambition to build a new societal order, grounded in European civilization: "We have the hope and the sincere intention of building on the ruins which we displace, a regular and new order of things, on the model of the civilizations which exist in Europe."
While the Nationals acknowledged Haiti's African roots biologically speaking, they viewed European civilization as the gold standard of progress. This was evident in Salomon's administration, which invited French teachers to Haiti and promoted the use of the French language as a cultural and intellectual benchmark.
Background Jean-Pierre Boyer's long regime saw color divisions intensify as the concentration of power and privileges among the Mulattos under him fostered resentment within Black Haitians, culminating into backlash which resulted in the rise of Faustin Soulouque, a Black military leader who declared himself emperor in 1849 and used his reign to consolidate power in favor of the Black majority. However, Soulouque's imperial ambitions collapsed in 1859, leading to his abdication, the reestablishment of a republican government under Fabre Geffrard, and the return of the Mulatto elite to political power. Whatever goodwill he gained through restoring the republic gradually dissipated in the repression of opposition that his regime later carried on.
In 1867, Fabre Geffrard's government was overthrown by Sylvian Salnave, a charismatic and initially popular figure. However, his reign soon emulated the autocratic tendecies of his predecessors, dissolving the National Assembly and nullifying the constitution. These dictatorial actions of his provoked widespread dissent across the nation. General Jean-Nicolas Nissage Saget led an insurgency in the north, while others too capitalized on the chaos; General Normil Dubois formed the Constitutional Army of the South and Michel Domingue became president of the Meridional State of the South around Les Cayes.
By 1868, Haiti had splintered into three: Salnave's government, Saget's northern republic, and the southern forces.
By 1869, with opposition forces moving in on the capital of Port-au-Prince, the defeat of Salnave was all but certain. In spectacular fashion, Salnave blew up the presidential palace as he fled the capital to the Dominican Republic. However, he was captured by Dominican frontier guards loyal to General José María Cabral, a supporter of Saget. On December 19, Salnave was turned over to Haitian authorities. He was tried on charges of incendiarism and murder and was executed on January 15, 1870.
The destruction of the presidential palace symbolized the end of conflict over the form of government (republic vs monarchy/empire). Out of the 1868–1869 crisis emerged a new political paradigm, one characterized by factional divides within a republican framework. By 1869, the ideological debate was no longer about what type of government Haiti should adopt but instead about how the republic should be governed. This era of party-based politics was marked by the polarization between the Black and Mulatto elites manifesting into two political parties: the predominantly Mulatto "Liberal Party" and the preponderantly Black "National Party". The both of them are considered as Haiti's first modern and nationwide political parties.
Michel-Roplh Troulliot argues that during this period, "Haiti came as close as it ever has to an effective parliamentary experience". Though it should not be mistaken that this was a period of calm. Civil wars and insurrections still persisted throughout this era.
History Shortly after the Liberal Party was created in 1870, Cayenne deputy Septimus Rameau founded the National Party, drawing on the populist politics that Lysius Salomon and others had promoted in Les Cayes since the 1840s.
During the early 1870s, the Liberal Party dominated Haitian politics, relegating the Nationals to a secondary role. Under the presidency of Nissage Saget (1869–1874), they managed to push through much of their Liberal agenda.
By 1873 however, President Saget was nearing the end of his prescribed term. Many believed Saget would help his ally, Michel Domingue, to succeed him as president. This prospect concerned the Liberals, as Domingue had a brutal record during the civil war in the 1860s, and they feared he would rule as a despot and ignore the constitution, potentially even plunging the country back into war. Thus the Liberals rallied behind Monplaisir Pierre as their alternative candidate.
When legislative elections were held in January, Domingue's supporters within the National Party failed to secure a majority in the House of Deputies. With the majority of the House under the Liberals, they elected Boyer-Bazelais as president of the chamber. In protest, Domingue's faction, led by Septimus Rameau, withdrew from the House altogether, causing a constitutional crisis and paralyzing legislative proceedings.
Despite the deadlock, the remaining members of the House elected Georges Brice, a Liberal, as the new president of the House. President Saget however refused to recognize the election, citing a constitutional requirement that two-thirds of the entire membership be present for such decisions to be considered valid.
By May 1874, the Liberals proposed extending President Saget's term beyond its expiration. Nevertheless, President Saget chose to step down as planned, handing over power to the Council of Secretaries of State. He was the first president to complete his term in office and not press for an extension.