Faustin Soulouque

Faustin-Élie Soulouque (15 August 1782 – 6 August 1867) was a career officer and general in the Haitian Army when he was elected President of Haiti in 1847. In 1849 he was proclaimed Emperor of Haiti under the name Faustin I. He soon purged the army of the ruling elite, installed black loyalists in administrative positions, and created a secret police and a personal army. In 1849 he created a black nobility in the country. However, his unsuccessful attempts to reconquer the neighbouring Dominican Republic undermined his control and a conspiracy led by General Fabre Nicolas Geffrard forced him to abdicate in 1859.