A documentary collection built around a long introductory history of the French Caribbean between 1789 and 1804. The introduction sets the ground: buccaneers who became planters, a colony the size of Maryland producing two-fifths of Europe's sugar and three-fifths of its coffee, and a labour regime so lethal that a third to a half of those who survived the Atlantic crossing died within a few years of arrival.

The narrative runs from the insurrection of August 1791, launched by a coalition of African-born and island-born plantation workers, through the emancipation decrees of 1793 and 1794, to Bonaparte's attempt at reconquest, which succeeded in Guadeloupe and failed in Saint-Domingue.

The documents gathered afterwards come from every side: planters and free men of colour, French officials and generals, Toussaint Louverture's colonial constitution, Delgres's last proclamation, American reactions, and Vodou songs about Dessalines. Maps, a chronology and questions for discussion accompany them.