Located in the Caribbean Sea, Haiti shares a 375 km border with the Dominican Republic on the ancient island of Hispaniola, the second largest island in the Antilles, after Cuba.

Discovered by Christopher Columbus when he dropped anchor at the Môle Saint Nicolas roadstead in 1492, Hispaniola remained under Spanish rule until 1640 when French privateers captured nearby Tortuga, and from there, waged war on the island.

By 1695 the Spanish were defeated and conceded the western half of Hispaniola to the French in the Treaty of Ryswick. From there began a long and dark period in Haitian History, with the development of Plantations and the slave trade in the newly formed French colony of Saint-Domingue.

Then came the spark that changed history. The Haitian Revolution of 1791 was the only successful slave revolt in world history and the defining moment of the abolition of slavery. Born from it, on January 1st 1804, was the free and independent state of Haiti.