Coup Atlas Research Database
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04105251957AttemptedMilitary coup

Haiti, 1957 — military coup attempt

Haiti (HTI)Caribbean, AmericasMay 25, 1957

Event Summary

The dataset records an attempted military coup in Haiti dated 25 May 1957, during the chaotic transitional period between the December 1956 fall of President Paul Magloire and the September 1957 election of Francois Duvalier, when Haiti churned through a rapid series of provisional governments amid army factionalism. On 25 May 1957 the popular labor leader Daniel Fignole was installed as provisional president, backed by his mass following of Port au Prince urban workers, but his three week administration was unstable and alienated the army. The military under General Antonio Kebreau deposed Fignole in a coup on 14 June 1957, forcing him at gunpoint to sign a resignation and exiling him, then ruled through a junta that organized the election won by Duvalier.

Whatever the specific event the dataset assigns to 25 May, the transitional turbulence did not produce a lasting government until Duvalier's rise.

Researched Details

Researched

Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.

Target identified in Coup Atlas research: The transitional Haitian authorities gave way through the 1957 churn; provisional president Fignole was installed on 25 May and deposed by the army on 14 June 1957
RESEARCHED NAME
Key figures
Daniel Fignole (provisional president installed 25 May 1957)
Antonio Kebreau (general who led the June 1957 coup)
Francois Duvalier (eventual winner of the 1957 election)

Sources

On 25 May 1957, amid a chaotic election process and spiraling civil strife, Daniel Fignole was designated provisional president because of his unsurpassed popularity in Port au Prince.
SOURCE REVIEWED Wikipedia, Daniel Fignole open source ↗
After just 19 days the Haitian armed forces broke into the presidential chambers, seized Fignole, and forced him at gunpoint to sign a resignation letter before bundling him into exile.
SOURCE REVIEWED Wikipedia, Daniel Fignole open source ↗
Fignole was forced into exile by an army coup on June 14, and a Military Council of Government headed by General Antonio Kebreau took power.
SOURCE REVIEWED U.S. State Department, FRUS 1955 to 1957 vol. VI open source ↗
The preceding nine months of chaos following Magloire's December 1956 resignation had weakened civilian institutions, elevating the military's role in shaping the September 1957 election won by Francois Duvalier.
SOURCE REVIEWED Grokipedia, 1957 Haitian general election open source ↗

Editorial Note

Dataset date 25 May 1957 corresponds to Fignole's installation as provisional president, not the successful 14 June army coup that deposed him; the dataset's leader fate coding of remained in office does not match Fignole's ouster, so the specific 25 May event is uncertain and may reflect a distinct failed move during the transitional churn, flagged. Context anchored entry.

Cross-Reference

Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.

Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:

Cline Center id
04105251957

How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.

Outcome and Target

Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: The transitional Haitian authorities gave way through the 1957 churn; provisional president Fignole was installed on 25 May and deposed by the army on 14 June 1957.

Baseline coding: Coup attempt failed to remove the incumbent. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.

Baseline Dataset Citation

Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset, v2.2.2
Peyton, Buddy, Joseph Bajjalieh, Michael Martin, and Andrea Gerald. 2026. Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset. Cline Center for Advanced Social Research. V.2.2.2. February 17. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. doi: 10.13012/B2IDB-9651987_V10
⚑ This citation establishes the coded baseline record; use the claim-level sources above for the researched narrative.

Baseline Source-Document Entries

New York Times

“Civil War Flares In Haiti; Army Groups Contest Rule Principals In The Haitian Revolt,”May 26,1957
“COALITION REGIME TAKES OVER HAITI; CAPITAL IS TENSE: Fignole Is Made Provisional President As Army’s chief quits–Mobs Still Active Guarantees Offered Troops Still Block Road Coal ITION REGIME TAKES OVER HAITI Situation Still Explosive Troops Check Traffic,” May 27, 1957

Atlanta Daily World

“Haiti gets provisional president; war averted,” May 28, 1957

This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →

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