In August 1964, a group of 13 young Haitian exiles calling themselves "Jeune Haiti" landed at Petite-Rivière-de-Dame-Marie on August 6, 1964, intending to overthrow the government of François "Papa Doc" Duvalier. Over the following two months, the Haitian Army fought the group in the hills near Jérémie, killing members of Jeune Haiti one by one. The last two survivors, Louis Drouin and Marcel Numa, were eventually captured alive, taken to Port-au-Prince, and shot in public against a cemetery wall on November 12, 1964.
During the period the army and the resistance fought in the hills, the Duvalier regime ordered the arrest and killing of family members of Jeune Haiti fighters in Jérémie. This set of killings became known as the "Jérémie Vespers," a name derived from the "vesper" picnic excursions for which the affected families were remembered. In total, 27 people were murdered as part of this campaign, ranging in age from 85-year-old Mrs. Chenier Villedrouin (née Corinne Sansaricq) to 2-year-old Régine Sansaricq.
The victims named in the historical record include members of the Drouin, Villedrouin, Sansaricq, and Bazile families — among them Louis Drouin Sr. and his wife Louise Degraff; their children Guy Drouin and Alice Drouin; Alice's husband Gérard Guilbaud; Corinne Sansaricq Villedrouin and her children Victor and Guy Villedrouin and their relatives; Pierre Sansaricq, his wife Louise Laforest, and multiple of their children and grandchildren, including young children Jean-Pierre, Stéphane, and Régine Sansaricq; and Alphonze Bazile, among others. One of the victims, Adeline Chassagne, was the aunt of musician Régine Chassagne of the band Arcade Fire. Bishop Guy Sansaricq, a Catholic bishop who opposed the Duvalier regime, is noted as a cousin of some of the victims.
The killings are remembered as part of the broader record of state violence under the Duvalier government, alongside other sites and institutions associated with repression in Haiti during this period, such as Fort Dimanche and the Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale (the Haitian secret police, commonly known as the Tontons Macoutes).
This dossier is based on a single detailed narrative source (Wikipedia), which itself cites additional external references. No further independent detailed narrative account was available for cross-verification of specific facts beyond the listed victims and events.
Key facts
- Victims
- Fernande Villedrouin, Frantz Villedrouin, Pierre Sansaricq, Louise Degraff, Fred Sansaricq, Guy Drouin, Edith Laforest, Guy Villedrouin, Marcel Numa, Adeline Chassagne, Louise Laforest, Alphonze Bazile, Gérard Guilbaud, Victor Villedrouin, Lisa Villedrouin, Roseline Drouin, Régine Sansaricq, Mrs. Chenier Villedrouin, Marie-Catherine Sansaricq, Pierre-Richard Sansaricq, Alice Drouin, Reynold Sansaricq, Lily Sansaricq, Stéphane Sansaricq, Louis Drouin Sr., Jean-Claude Sansaricq, Jean-Pierre Sansaricq, Hubert Sansaricq, Louis Drouin, Graziela Sansaricq
- Date
- 1964
- Location
- Jérémie, Haiti
- Case status
- solved
Case timeline
1964-08-06
Thirteen members of "Jeune Haiti" land at Petite-Rivière-de-Dame-Marie intending to overthrow the government of François 'Papa Doc' Duvalier.
1964-08
Fighting begins between the Haitian Army and Jeune Haiti; the regime begins ordering the arrest and killing of Jeune Haiti members' families in Jérémie.
1964-10
By the end of this period, 27 relatives of Jeune Haiti members have been killed in and around Jérémie in what became known as the Jérémie Vespers.
1964-11-12
The last two surviving Jeune Haiti members, Louis Drouin and Marcel Numa, are shot in public against a cemetery wall in Port-au-Prince.
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People
Fernande Villedrouin
VICTIMSister of Guy and Victor Villedrouin, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Frantz Villedrouin
VICTIM16-year-old son of Victor Villedrouin and Adeline Chassagne, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Pierre Sansaricq
VICTIMKilled during the Jérémie Vespers.
Louise Degraff
VICTIMWife of Louis Drouin Sr., killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Fred Sansaricq
VICTIMSon of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Guy Drouin
VICTIMBrother of Louis Drouin Jr., killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Edith Laforest
VICTIMSister of Louise Laforest, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Guy Villedrouin
VICTIMBrother of Victor Villedrouin, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Marcel Numa
VICTIMMember of Jeune Haiti; captured alive after the group's fight against the Haitian Army and shot in public in Port-au-Prince on November 12, 1964.
Adeline Chassagne
VICTIMWife of Victor Villedrouin and aunt of musician Régine Chassagne of Arcade Fire; killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Louise Laforest
VICTIMWife of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Alphonze Bazile
VICTIMSon of Pierre and Vesta Bazile, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Gérard Guilbaud
VICTIMHusband of Alice Drouin, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Victor Villedrouin
VICTIMSon of Mrs. Chenier Villedrouin, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Lisa Villedrouin
VICTIM18-year-old daughter of Victor Villedrouin and Adeline Chassagne, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Roseline Drouin
VICTIMWife of Guy Villedrouin and sister of Louis Drouin Jr., killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Régine Sansaricq
VICTIM2-year-old victim killed during the Jérémie Vespers; daughter of Jean-Claude and Graziela Sansaricq.
Mrs. Chenier Villedrouin
VICTIM85-year-old victim (née Corinne Sansaricq), mother of Guy and Victor Villedrouin, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Marie-Catherine Sansaricq
VICTIM10-year-old daughter of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Pierre-Richard Sansaricq
VICTIMKilled during the Jérémie Vespers.
Alice Drouin
VICTIMSister of Louis Drouin Jr., killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Reynold Sansaricq
VICTIMSon of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Lily Sansaricq
VICTIMSister of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Stéphane Sansaricq
VICTIM4-year-old son of Jean-Claude and Graziela Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Louis Drouin Sr.
VICTIMFather of Louis Drouin Jr., killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Jean-Claude Sansaricq
VICTIMSon of Pierre and Louise Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Jean-Pierre Sansaricq
VICTIM6-year-old son of Jean-Claude and Graziela Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Hubert Sansaricq
VICTIMSon of Pierre Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Louis Drouin
VICTIMMember of Jeune Haiti; captured alive after the group's fight against the Haitian Army and shot in public in Port-au-Prince on November 12, 1964.
Graziela Sansaricq
VICTIMWife of Jean-Claude Sansaricq, killed during the Jérémie Vespers.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Places
Common questions
- What happened to the victim?
- In August–November 1964, Haitian government forces killed 27 relatives of members of the "Jeune Haiti" resistance group in and around Jérémie, Haiti, after the group landed to try to overthrow the Duvalier regime; the two surviving Jeune Haiti members were later publicly executed.
- Where did the crime happen?
- Jérémie, Haiti.
- What is the current status of the case?
- Status: solved.
Related cases
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Sources
- Jérémie Vesperswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — fordi9.comnews · fordi9.com · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — search.worldcat.orgnews · search.worldcat.org · 2026-07-07