Portrait of Toussaint Louverture

François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (1743–1803) was a freed slave, general and Franco-Haitian politician of African descent, He played a leading historical role during the Haitian Revolution (1791–1802) and became one of the key figures in the movements for the emancipation of the colonies from French rule. Arrested and taken to France, Toussaint Louverture died in 1803, imprisoned on Napoleon’s orders and held in solitary confinement at Fort de Joux, where he succumbed to the harsh climate of the Doubs on 1 January 1804.