German Haitians
German Haitians are Haitian of German descent or a German with Haitian citizenship.
History
The earliest known German settlement in Saint-Domingue was in Bombardopolis, south of the Môle-Saint-Nicolas. About a thousand Germans came to Bombardopolis in the eighteenth century and managed to make a living with growing coffee. They received Haitian citizenship from Jean-Jacques Dessalines after 1804, and gradually mixed with the rest of the population. Henri Christophe had German military engineers designed the Citadelle Laferrière and supervised its construction.[1]
In 1910, Haitian Germans controlled 80% of Haiti’s International Commerce. Though German Haitians only numbered about 200, they wielded a disproportionate amount of economic power. For example, they owned and operated utilities in Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haïtien but also controlled the Port-au-Prince main wharf. These Germans competed with the French merchants over the customs receipts that represented Haiti’s flagrant debts to European creditors as well as control over Haiti’s vulnerable National Bank.[2]
When the US declared war on Germany in 1917, the Haitian government protested against the heavy German submarine activity in the area. Haiti expelled Germans from the country and Germany severed diplomatic ties with Haiti. This gave Haitians the excuse to officially declare war on July 14, 1918. German property was confiscated by the Haitian government and placed in liquidation. In 1918, Germans return to the island after the war, and resumed their old business, and re-acquired their possessions.[2]
Notable German Haitians
- Klaus Eberwein, businessman
- Werner Jaegerhuber, famous composer
- Bracha Krueger, model
- Joe Gaetjens, soccer player for the United States national team in the 1950 FIFA World Cup
- Gregory Mevs, businessman
- Rolf Sambale, graphic designer and decorator
- Cornelia Schutt, known by her stage-name TiCorn is a folk singer and songwriter notable for her song Haiti Cherie in the 1960s.
- Monique Snyder, author
- Hans Tippenhaueur, businessman
- Ricardo Widmaier, pioneer of radio and cinema in Haiti
- Herby Widmaier, famous Haitian jazz singer
References
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- Titus, Rubens F. (Rene Preval Haiti Archives Online)
- Northeastern University Thesis Archive (An Article Entitled: Haiti Net Foreign Relations)
