Samori’s nine-year evasion of French troops expanded France’s West African empire

Evidence

This leader was the Muslim reformer Samori, born in the Guinea highlands and of Dyula origin. Unlike his rivals, Umar and Amadu, for both of whom religious reform had been a sincere objective, Samori was first and foremost a soldier and conqueror, who never had time to consolidate his rule or his empire. From his home in the Guinea hinterland, he had pushed east and south of the Niger River; his most important conquests took place between I870 and I875. By I89o, however, Samori had lost most of them to the famous French colonial commander, Louis Archinard. For the next nine years, Samori and his cadre of sofas nevertheless managed to evade French colonial troops, who made it a point of honor to defeat him and in the process kept expanding France’s West African empire. In I899, Samori was finally captured. — Alice L. Conklin, A Mission to Civilize_ The Republican…, 120

Categorization

• QUESTION: The paradox that chasing Samori expanded French territory is worth understanding — did pursuit define the conquest’s geography?