Colonial revolts forced a reversal toward legitimating customary chiefly rule

Evidence

Like many local witnesses, Clozel thought these revolts were a response to long-standing grievances about the exercise of French authority, not just recruitment alone. Encouraged in this assessment by Delafosse, Clozel issued new instructions for the appointment of chiefs throughout the federation. These instructions stressed the importance of respecting customary lineages when appointing chiefs, thereby implicitly legitimating a precolonial institution that earlier administrators had dismissed as parasitic and tyrannical. Henceforth, Clozel insisted, in a revision of his predecessor’s instructions, chiefs were to be chosen in conformity with local tradition after consultation with the local populations; no new men were to be appointed in recompense for services rendered to the French. — Alice L. Conklin, A Mission to Civilize_ The Republican…, 618

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader pattern of indirect rule emerging as colonial powers reassessed direct-assimilationist policies across Africa.