anbar - 12 April 2012 05:56 PM
Weren't those remains brought back to Haiti in 1982 or 1983?
To the best of my knowledge he is sitll buried on the grounds of Fort de Joux.
I found this tidbit of information:
a229: Re: Toussaint's body - Antoine comments and speaks of his visit to Fort de Joux (fwd)
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To: Haiti mailing list <haiti@lists.webster.edu>
Subject: a229: Re: Toussaint's body - Antoine comments and speaks of his visit to Fort de Joux (fwd)
From: Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>
Date: Fri, 4 Jan 2002 17:07:52 -0600 (CST)
Sender:
From: GUY S ANTOINE <guyantoine@windowsonhaiti.com>
This is what I have learned about the disposition of Toussaint's body. There was
an autopsy of Toussaint's body on April 8, 1803, after which Commander Amiot
wrote (I translate): "I had him buried by a priest of the parish in the cave situated
under the old chapel, side G of Fort de Joux, where we used to bury the the
soldiers of this garrison". Toussaint Louverture's body was then buried
unceremoniously without so much as a casket.
In 1879, the location of his burial
(among a great many French soldiers) underwent a considerable amount of
modernization work, during which ALL bone remains which were found were
tossed out in various digs around the new fortifications.
The notion of the recovery of Toussaint's remains is pure fantasy, though the
subject of abundant mystification. In 1954, Léon Thébaud, Haitian Ambassador
to France had a small stone monument erected on the grounds of Chateau de
Joux and with a memorial cross. The inauguration took place on August 29,
1954. It could appear to some as Toussaint's tomb, though of course this is
purely symbolic. After repeated requests from the government of Haiti, a
shovelful of earth from the grounds of Château de Joux was transferred to the
Haitian government as the symbolic remains of one of Haiti's two greatest
heroes, if not the greatest hero of mankind's quest for freedom, the immortal
Toussaint Louverture.
On March 31 1987, French President Francois Mitterand paid a private visit
to Toussaint's cell and meditated in front of the chimney Toussaint used for
those seven months to gain a measure of warmth in an otherwise very cold
cell (From the day of his jailing, Toussaint was never permitted one day to
go out of his cell and see the sun again.) After his visit, Mitterand commented:
"Toussaint is one of the greatest of his century, he is the symbol of emancipation
of black slaves, but just as well the emancipation of us all."
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Let's find out, and if at all possible, bring him home for good.
