Compare and Contrast Essay - Toussaint and Tecumseh

Toussaint L'Ouverture was born in 1774 and died in 1803. He was an ex slave, and between 1792 and 1802, he created an army of blacks and mulattos that dominated Hispaniola, a Caribbean Island with a French colony in its western half and a Spanish on in its eastern half. When Toussaint defeated France, England, and Spain, his army took over and liberated the French Colony of Santo Domingo. Toussaint's father was a free man and was taught by Christian missionaries, which gave the opportunity to Toussaint to read and write. As a knowledge slave, Toussaint became a house slave, which meant better treatment as a slave. In 1790, slaves were allowed to govern themselves in a colonial assembly. A civil war broke out in 1791 between the mulattos and slave owners. The French government tried to solve this issue by appointing commissioners from France to govern the Island. The commissioners were hostile to the planters and vice versa. In 1793, a commissioner named Sonthonax abolished slavery to fight the Spanish and the British. Toussaint created a disciplined army to fight the Spaniards and the British. By about 1795, Toussaint and his army controlled most of the colony. Toussaint created a treaty with Britain and the United States to not revolt and attack nearby Jamaica. Toussaint's wisdom is confirmed by his plans for the social and economic reconstruction of the colony. Toussaint knew in fact the ex slaves would avoid working in the fields in the future. Toussaint used military force to keep the field hands on the plantations. Toussaint also tried to maintain a good note with the United States and Britain, for trading purposes. All of Toussaint policies required racial peace and the absence of foreign interference. Napoleon Bonaparte invaded the island in 1802 with 20,00 French troops. The French were defeated, and a peace treaty and a truce with France was established. French General Charles Victor Leclerc lured Toussaint into a trap, and captured him and imprisoned him. Toussaint died a short time later.

Tecumseh, also know as shooting star, was born in March of 1768 in the Shawnee village of Piqua, situated in what is now southern Ohio. When Tecumseh was seven, his village of peaceful Christianized Delaware Indians was destroyed by frontiersmen. His mother urged him to take vengeance against the enemies of his race. Tecumseh was noted for his kindhearted treatment to the poor and elderly. Many described him as a marked sense of personal dignity and a hot temper and strong self control. Tecumseh began his organization of the Northwest Indians in the 1830s. a 1795 treaty gave the United States two thirds of Ohio and a portion of southeastern Indiana. Tecumseh tried to halt the decline of the game of animal and food shortages. In 1805, Lalawethika, Tecumseh's brother, experienced a mystical religious conversion that turned this formally lazy drunkard into a Prophet. Tecumseh made a series of