Slavery was commonly used in the parts of the Caribbean controlled by France. Martinique and Guadeloupe (French colonies), which were the first important slave societies of the Caribbean, began the widespread use of African slaves by the end of the 17th century, as their economies converted from tobacco to sugar production.

In Saint-Domingue(Haiti) slaves were mainly used for the production of sugar, coffee, cotton and indigo, making the French colony the richest at the time and producing a vast wealth for France and it's citizens. The emerging classes of the French bourgeoisie were a driving force behind the French Revolution and sought to shield their profits from the interference and taxation of the king. Many of the merchants living of the slave-trade and the fruits of slave labor, were located in French coastal cities such as Bordeaux and Nantes.