19th century – 19th century
Western Sudan, including Senegal, Mali, Niger, and adjacent regions
The French conquest of the Western Sudan was a late nineteenth-century military expansion that followed French claims to the Upper Niger interior. French forces fought the Tukulor and Maninka states, conquered Jenne and Timbuktu in 1893–94, and captured Gao in 1899 after continued Tuareg resistance. The conquest incorporated the former territories of the Ghana, Mali, and Songhay Empires into French colonial rule.
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The Story
French ambitions in the Western Sudan developed alongside European competition for African territory. France already controlled Gorée, an island off the coast of modern Senegal, and Saint-Louis at the mouth of the Senegal River. Its intended route toward the interior followed the Senegal River and then crossed overland to the Niger, but the Tukulor and Maninka empires blocked the advance.
The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 established rules for European claims while excluding African representatives. French delegates protected claims to the interior regions of the Upper Niger, and French forces subsequently undertook the conquest of the Western Sudan. The campaign confronted organized states equipped with firearms, including Samori Touré’s Maninka army and the forces of the Tukulor Empire.
French troops conquered Jenne and Timbuktu in 1893–94. Tuareg groups in the Sahara continued fighting for another eleven years, but the capture of Gao in 1899 completed French control over the old territories of medieval Ghana, Mali, and Songhay. Under colonial rule, the territory now known as Mali was called the French Soudan.
19th century – 19th century
Western Sudan, including Senegal, Mali, Niger, and adjacent regions
The French conquest of the Western Sudan was a late nineteenth-century military expansion that followed French claims to the Upper Niger interior. French forces fought the Tukulor and Maninka states, conquered Jenne and Timbuktu in 1893–94, and captured Gao in 1899 after continued Tuareg resistance. The conquest incorporated the former territories of the Ghana, Mali, and Songhay Empires into French colonial rule.
Continue exploring
The Story
French ambitions in the Western Sudan developed alongside European competition for African territory. France already controlled Gorée, an island off the coast of modern Senegal, and Saint-Louis at the mouth of the Senegal River. Its intended route toward the interior followed the Senegal River and then crossed overland to the Niger, but the Tukulor and Maninka empires blocked the advance.
The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 established rules for European claims while excluding African representatives. French delegates protected claims to the interior regions of the Upper Niger, and French forces subsequently undertook the conquest of the Western Sudan. The campaign confronted organized states equipped with firearms, including Samori Touré’s Maninka army and the forces of the Tukulor Empire.
French troops conquered Jenne and Timbuktu in 1893–94. Tuareg groups in the Sahara continued fighting for another eleven years, but the capture of Gao in 1899 completed French control over the old territories of medieval Ghana, Mali, and Songhay. Under colonial rule, the territory now known as Mali was called the French Soudan.
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