Today in History: The U.S. Occupation of Haiti

On this day (July Twenty-Eight in 1915 the United States under President Woodrow Wilson occupied Haiti. The military intervention followed four years of assassinations and political instability in Haiti combined with U.S. concerns over Imperial Germany’s longstanding interest in the strategically placed island. Many American business interests were also unhappy that Germany controlled about 80% of Haiti’s foreign trade. German success in Haiti came from the willingness of their merchants to marry into prominent Haitian families, permitting them to bypass the constitutional restriction against foreigners owning property in Haiti. At the same time, however, German businessmen fueled the instability in Haiti by floating high-interest loans to rebellious political factions.

Trying to strengthen American commercial interests in Haiti, Wilson backed an effort to take control of the National City Bank and the National Bank of Haiti, including sending marines in December 2014 to seize the gold reserves of the banks and move them to the New York City vault of the National City Bank. A pro-American dictator took power in February 2015 but was assassinated 5 months later prompting Wilson to seize control of the country. The American occupation would last for 19 years. Herbert Hoover negotiated an end to the occupation but hadn’t completed it by the time he left office. In 1933, FDR completed the withdrawal of U.S. troops as part of his “Good Neighbor” policy.