Jean-Jacques Dessalines was born a slave in the French part of the island of Santo Domingo (Republic of Haiti). He took part in the general uprising of August 1791. Once slavery was abolished, in 1794, Dessalines followed Toussaint when the latter rallied against the French. He became his lieutenant. They later succeeded in defeating the French who capitulated in 1803 after the battle of Vertières. Dessalines declared the independence of the former colony on the 1st January 1804 and proclaimed himself emperor of Haiti but was assassinated on 17 October 1806 in Port au Prince.