Jean-Pierre Boyer-Bazelais, founder of the Liberal Party, died 143 years ago.

143 years ago, on October 27, 1883, Jean-Pierre Boyer-Bazelais was killed in Miragoâne, at the head of an insurrection against President Lysius Salomon. He was a lawyer, deputy, and military man who founded Haiti's first political party.

A Man of Law and Arms

Born on May 24, 1833, in Port-au-Prince, Boyer-Bazelais was a deputy and president of the Chamber of Deputies. As a squadron leader, he also served as aide-de-camp to President Fabre Geffrard. On August 30, 1865, he married Marie Anne Joséphine Charlotte Adléda Liautaud in Port-au-Prince.

The Liberal Party

In 1870, he founded the Liberal Party, mainly composed of mulattoes and favoring a parliamentary regime. Majority in parliament since its creation, the party multiplied pressures on the executive branch and lost voter confidence. It split, and the rival faction came to power with Pierre Théoma Boisrond-Canal. In response, the National Party was born, which won the 1879 elections. For over a dozen years, the two camps violently confronted each other.

The Insurrection of Miragoâne

Opposed to Salomon, he landed on March 27, 1883, in Miragoâne with exiled liberal members from Cuba and Jamaica. The uprising spread to other cities and his supporters fought even in Port-au-Prince. After more than six months of fighting, his death in Miragoâne led to the surrender of the insurgents.