1 Crown - Henri Christophe Essai

Henri Christophe declared himself King Henri I of northern Haiti in 1811, having already controlled the region as a rival to the republic in the south under Pétion. The 1813 crown essai was struck as part of his effort to establish a monarchical coinage befitting his new court at Sans-Souci. Essais of this type were pattern pieces evaluating proposed designs — very few were produced, and none entered circulation. Christophe's kingdom collapsed in 1820 when he suffered a stroke and, facing a military revolt, shot himself with a silver bullet according to persistent contemporary accounts.