Nord, Pierre Alexis (1820–1910)

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Nord, Pierre Alexis (1820–1910)

Pierre Alexis Nord (b. 1820; d. 1 May 1910), president of Haiti (1902–1908). Nord came to power after the abdication of Simon Sam and the subsequent civil war between forces led by Nord and those led by Antenor Firmin. After the victory of Nord's forces, he became president in December 1902. Nord's introduction of reforms such as punishment of looters of the national treasury made him unpopular.

In March 1908 an uprising resulted in almost fifty deaths. The government responded with a reign of terror. Four nations sent warships to Port-au-Prince to protect their citizens. In November 1908, Nord ordered General Antoine Simon, commander of the army in the south, to come to the capital to confer on the political situation. Instead Simon led a revolt, taking possession of Port-au-Prince on 2 December. Nord fled to Jamaica, where he died. Simon succeeded him as president (1908–1911).

See alsoHaiti; Sam, Tirésias Augustin Simon; Simon, Antoine.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Robert D. Heinl, Jr., and Nancy G. Heinl, Written in Blood: The Story of the Haitian People (1978).

Additional Bibliography

Berloquin-Chassany, Pascale. Haïti, une démocratie compromise, 1890–1911. Paris: Harmattan, 2004.

                                            DariÉn Davis