The Citadel Laferrière or, Citadel Henri Christophe, or simply the Citadel is a large early 19th-century fortress located on the Bonnet à l'Evêque mountaintop in North Haiti, within driving distance of Cap Haitien, approximately 27 kilometers (17 miles) south of the city. Commissioned by Haitian revolutionary leader Henri Christophe, and built by tens of thousands of former slaves, the Citadel played a key role in the newly independent Haiti's defensive strategy against potential French incursion.
Including several smaller forts across the country, the stronghold remains the only African-derived military fortification in the New World as well as the first example of African-derived colonial architecture; which it shares with Sans-Souci Palace, also commissioned by Christophe. Both were disunited by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1982. The fortress is universally regarded as an icon of the Caribbean nation.
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