The
United States occupation of Haiti began on July 28, 1915, when 330
United States Marines landed at
Port-au-Prince,
Haiti, on the authority of
President of the United States Woodrow Wilson in order to establish control of Haiti's political and financial interests. The invasion and subsequent occupation was promoted by growing American business interests in Haiti. The July intervention took place following years of socioeconomic instability within Haiti that culminated with the murder of
President of Haiti Vilbrun Guillaume Sam by insurgents angered by his ordered executions of elite opposition. The occupation ended on August 1, 1934, after President
Franklin D. Roosevelt reaffirmed an August 1933 disengagement agreement. The last contingent of US Marines departed on August 15, 1934, after a formal transfer of authority to the American-created
Gendarmerie of Haiti.
During the occupation, Haiti had three new presidents, though the United States ruled as a
military regime led by Marines and the US created Haitian gendarmerie through
martial law. Two major rebellions occurred during this period resulting in several thousand Haitians killed and numerous human rights violations – including torture and
summary executions – by United States Marines and the gendarmerie.
Corvee labor was utilized for massive
infrastructure projects that resulted in hundreds to thousands of deaths.
