The Virgin Mary and Revolution in Saint‐Domingue: The Charisma of Romaine‐la‐Prophétesse

Abstract

Drawing on historical analyses of the role of religion in the Haitian Revolution and on neo‐Weberian discussions of charisma, this article offers new insights into the background of Romaine‐la‐Prophétesse, a religious leader of slave insurrections in Saint‐Domingue whose campaign lasted from the summer of 1791 to March of the following year. Worsley and Bourdieu’s interactionist model of charismatic authority is used to orient consideration of the Kongolese religious and ideological influences on Romaine’s movement and his radically subversive appropriation of the symbol of the Virgin Mary. The article suggests that Romaine‐la‐Prophétesse may have himself been native Kongolese, while clearly demonstrating that his message drew heavily on Kongolese thought, in which terms is his charismatic authority to be understood.

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