Cap-Haïtien

Cap-Haïtien (French: [kap a.isjɛ̃] ; Haitian Creole: Kap Ayisyen; "Haitian Cape") is a commune of about 300,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the department of Nord. Previously named Cap‑Français (Haitian Creole: Kap-Fransè; initially Cap-François Haitian Creole: Kap-Franswa) and Cap‑Henri (Haitian Creole: Kap-Anri) during the rule of Henri I, it was historically nicknamed the Paris of the Antilles, because of its wealth and sophistication, expressed through its architecture and artistic life. It was an important city during the colonial period, serving as the capital of the French Colony of Saint-Domingue from the city's formal foundation in 1711 until 1770 when the capital was moved to Port-au-Prince. After the Haitian Revolution, it became the capital of the Kingdom of Haiti under King Henri I until 1820.