Black Owned Wall Street

1. The Decree of 4 February 1794 (16 Pluviôse, Year II)
   ∙ Issued by the National Convention in Paris
   ∙ Formally abolished slavery in all French colonies, including Saint-Domingue (Haiti), Guadeloupe, and French Guiana
   ∙ Declared that all men, regardless of color, living in the colonies were French citizens with full rights
   ∙ This was the first abolition of slavery by a major Western power
   ∙ It was largely driven by the Haitian Revolution already underway, and by delegates from Saint-Domingue — including a freed Black man and a mixed-race man — appearing before the Convention
2. Napoleon’s Reversal — Law of 20 May 1802
   ∙ Napoleon reinstated slavery, undoing the 1794 decree
   ∙ This was a major betrayal that radicalized the Haitian Revolution, ultimately leading to Haiti’s full independence in 1804

Final Abolition
∙ France permanently abolished slavery on 27 April 1848, under the Second Republic, largely thanks to Victor Schoelcher

The 1794 decree was remarkable for its time — it preceded British abolition by over a decade and American abolition by 70 years.