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The Lüders affair was a legal and diplomatic embarrassment to the 
On September 21, 1897, Haitian police were looking for one Dorléus Présumé, who was accused of theft. They found him washing a coach in front of the "Écuries Centrales" (Central Stables) of 
On December 6, 1897, two German warships, the
p. 391
The Lüders affair was extremely embarrassing for president Sam, and undermined his authority in Haiti, leading to his resignation in 1902.
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
an government in 1897.
On September 21, 1897, Haitian police were looking for one Dorléus Présumé, who was accused of theft. They found him washing a coach in front of the "Écuries Centrales" (Central Stables) of Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...
, whose proprietor was Emile Lüders. Présumé resisted arrest, and Lüders, who had heard the noise, came to his defence.
On September 21, 1897, both Présumé and Lüders were sentenced by the Police Tribunal to one month's imprisonment for assault and battery. They appealed to the Correctional Tribunal, but this time they were also charged with using force to resist arrest. The original sentence was annulled and on October 14 they were sentenced to one year's imprisonment.
Lüders had previously been sentenced to six days imprisonment in 1894 for battery
Battery most often refers to:
* Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power
* Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact
Battery may also refer to:
Energy source
*Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
on a soldier. Witnesses against Lüders included British, French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
, and German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
witnesses. Nonetheless, on October 17 the German Chargé d'affaires
A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...
, Count Schwerin, demanded the immediate release of Lüders (who had been born in Haiti but had a German father), as well as the removal of the judges and dismissal of the police officers involved in the case. Responding to intervention by the American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
representative, W.F. Powell, President Sam pardoned Lüders, who left the country on October 22.
On December 6, 1897, two German warships, the screw corvette
Steam frigates (including screw frigates) and the smaller steam corvettes, steam sloops, steam gunboats and steam schooners, were steam-powered warships that were not meant to stand in the line of battle. There were some exceptions like for exam ...
s and , anchored in the harbor of Port-au-Prince, without the usual salute, and Captain Thiele of ''Charlotte'' notified the Haitian government of an ultimatum whose conditions were humiliating in both form and substance: compensation in the amount of twenty thousand dollars for Lüders, a promise that Lüders could return to Haiti, a letter of apology to the German government, a 21-gun salute to the German flag, a reception for the German Chargé d'affaires, and four hours to decide. The President was required to raise a white flag on the presidential palace in token of surrender.
The Haitian government yielded, to the distress of its people, who had been prepared to defend their national honor. They were horrified to see the white flag, despite the protestations of the French ambassador, Théodore Meyer, that it was merely a parliamentary standard.
Solon Ménos
Solon Ménos (9 March 1859 – 14 October 1918) was a Haitian writer and politician. Born in Anse-à-Veau, Ménos studied in France and received a doctorate in law there at the age of twenty-two. A prominent politician, Ménos served as Haiti's mi ...
, Foreign Minister of Haiti at the time, subsequently fought a duel with a member of Lüders' family and was the subject of an action for defamation by two German officials requiring him to append a statement to the end of his book on the Lüders affair.Ménosp. 391
The Lüders affair was extremely embarrassing for president Sam, and undermined his authority in Haiti, leading to his resignation in 1902.
See also
* Batsch affairReferences
{{Reflist 19th century in Haiti 1897 in Germany Foreign relations of the German Empire 1897 in international relations 1897 in Haiti Political scandals in Haiti Ultimata Germany–Haiti relations