When taking a political angle, the revolution was a major success. Slavery was abolished and that was the primary goal. It was a very big deal to abolish slavery because of the impact it would have on the countries' exports, such as sugar and coffee. The moral issue and the extremely unsafe working conditions combined to create a convincing argument against slavery. Prior to the revolution, Haiti was separated into four different social groups. At the top were the white planters, who owned the plantations and slaves. After the planters, came the wealthy free people of color, who were not forced into slavery, but did suffer from legal discrimination. The third group was made up of poor whites, and they were enraged with their social status because of the wealthy free people of color. The lowest social group consisted of the slaves, who were working very hard for no pay, and suffering the wrath of heat exhaustion and other issues that come with working on plantations. The wealthy free people of color kick started the revolution because the planters and the French would not grant them citizenship. The revolution however, was not that simple. It involved the French, the Spanish, the British, the slaves, and the whites. The outcome of the revolution created the first independent black nation in the western world. After the success of the revolution, the former slaves were now being compensated for their hard work. Most Haitians continued to work on the plantations as farmers. It is important to note that Napoleon Bonaparte attempted to restore slavery in 1802; however, he was unsuccessful.
After the revolution, the political and social hierarchy was stable. There were no more slaves and that was the most important thing. Again, it is important to acknowledge the independence of the country as a major positive step forward as well. Unfortunately, with all these positive effects of the revolution came the disaster of the economy.
