Senegal french conquest · French Conquest in Senegal
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French Conquest in Senegal
French Conquest in Senegal
The location and success of trade in Senegal made it a hot commodity among Europeans. The Portuguese, British, French, and Dutch all wanted the territory, particulary Goree Island. In 1588 the Dutch were able to successfully overtake the Portuguese and expanded trade. France established its first post in Saint-Louis. The Dutch and French were both keen to take control of the other's territory and fears of the growing powers of the Dutch Republic came to a head in the Franco-Dutch War. The war actually took place in Europe, but while the Dutch defended their homeland, the French attacked Goree Island and ousted the Dutch from Senegal, claiming it for France in 1677.
Territories on the mainland were taken from and returned to France by the the British. When the British took the territory during the Napoleonic War, they abolished slavery in 1807 and upon its return to France, the French agreed to uphold it, so slave trade in Senegal fell sharply during the 19th century but its rich resources were still in demand and the French soon went inland to claim the territory.
During the time Europe was fighting over the coastal settlements, the Senegalese still had control of the land. The Waalo Kindgom existed around the Saint-Louis trading post, so they had a treaty with the French in which the French would pay them for goods and they would provide protection for the traders. When French ambitions turned to colonisation, they started by conquering their Waalo allies in 1855. Around the same time, the Toucouleur Empire had conquered the Futa Toro, which formed out of an Islamic Revolution among citizens in the Denianke Kingdom in 1776 who were tired of being persecuted. The Toucouleur unsuccessfully tried to drive out the French in 1857, and the Trarza from Mauritania who supported the Senegalese kingdoms were also threatening French advancement.
The French built a series of forts along the coast and river, and the Trarza were told they would not be attacked as long as they stayed north of the Senegal River and they did, which allowed France to establish greater control over northern Senegal. The construction of the Dakar-Niger Railway made it much easier to maintain control of the region and Senegal was in French control by 1895 and officially became part of French West Africa in 1904.
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Senegal Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.