Conquest and Resistance in West Africa - (Studies in Modern French and Francophone History) by Ruth Ginio (Hardcover)

About the Book

A fascinating legal scandal that started in Senegal in 1890 with the murder of a colonial administrator and the illegal executions of his killer and two other alleged accomplices. The book follows the struggle of one of their widows' for justice against the powerful colonial administration which eventually reached the French press and parliament.

Book Synopsis

This book is an enthralling account of a legal scandal, which erupted in colonial Senegal in 1890 and reached the French metropolitan press and the parliament. The murder of a colonial administrator, Abel Jeandet, by one of his soldiers led to the brutal and illegal executions without trial of the killer and two local dignitaries. The volume follows the fascinating story of Ndiereby Ba, the widow of one of the dignitaries, who with the help of powerful métis men in the capital Saint Louis sued the French administrators who had supervised the executions for the murder of her husband. Through this captivating tale the book articulates the French expansion into West Africa, the resistance to colonial rule both violent and non-violent, and the lack of interest on the part of French politicians in the brutal conquest of a territory they know nothing about.

From the Back Cover

A compelling history of murder, political intrigue and legal machinations embedded in the context of the early French colonial project in Senegal, this book analyses key aspects of French colonial expansion along the Senegal River. It examines the politico-legal machinations and distortions the colonial administration resorted to when confronted with a strong and legitimate legal challenge.
Known as Jeandet Affair, the story centres on Ndiereby Bah, a young woman wrongfully widowed when colonial administrator Abel Jeandet was murdered by one of his soldiers. This led to the brutal and illegal executions - without trial - of the killer and two local dignitaries. Bah's dogged pursuit of justice led to harassment, intimidation and the cynical distortion of French law and political process by an administration determined to assert its narrative. Conquest and resistance in West Africa offers a fascinating account of how the scandal has remained and percolated through Senegalese cultural memory, remaining relevant more than a hundred years after these events took place.
The volume brings to light the role of women in anti-colonial non-violent struggles, who are often marginalized in the history of African responses to colonisation and provides insights into the efforts of the various participants in the French colonial project in West Africa who tried to shape, influence or resist it. It describes conflicting perspectives on murder and summary executions from the conflicting perspectives of the French colonial administration, the French legal system, local politicians and activist métis.

About the Author

Ruth Ginio is Professor of History at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.