Chronology By Patrick Jean-Baptiste - 0 11 FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailPrint 1697 September. Treaty of Ryswick signed. Spain gave up the western side of Hispaniola to France, which became Saint Domingue. 1791 August 16: A building was set ablaze in a sugar plantation. Was it officially the beginning of the Haitian Revolution? Related Articles: Konesans: The Definitive Timeline of the Haitian Revolution