War and defeat Samori Ture

samori s army equipped european firearms , complex structure of permanent units. army divided infantry wing of sofa (mandinka infantry, slaves) , cavalry wing. 1887, samori field 30,000 35,000 infantry , 3,000 cavalry, in regular squadrons of 50 each. but, french did not want give him time consolidate position. exploiting rebellions of several of ture s subject tribes, animist , resisted islam, french continued expand westernmost holdings. forced ture sign several treaties ceding territory them between 1886 , 1889.

in march 1891, french force under colonel louis archinard launched direct attack on kankan. knowing fortifications not stop french artillery, touré began war of manoeuvre. despite victories against isolated french columns (for example @ dabadugu in september 1891), ture failed push french core of kingdom. in june 1892, col. archinard s replacement, humbert, leading small, well-supplied force of picked men, captured ture s capital of bissandugu. in blow, british had stopped selling breech loaders ture in accordance brussels convention of 1890.

ture shifted base of operations eastward, toward bandama , comoe river in dabakala. instituted scorched earth policy, devastating each area before evacuated it. though manoeuvre cut ture off sierra leone , liberia, last sources of modern weapons, delayed french pursuit. after spring of 1893, french partially succeeded in cutting off ture s sources of weapons supplied british traders since late 1880s. ture tried negotiate british in colonial domains in ghana work against french interest, british not intervene directly against france.

he tried build anticolonial alliance ashanti empire failed when ashante defeated british , fighting between ture , british soldiers in 1897. fall of other anti-colonial armies, particularly babemba traoré @ sikasso, permitted french colonial army launch concentrated assault against touré. 1898, lost of territory , fled mountains of western ivory coast. captured on 29 september 1898 french captain henri gouraud , exiled gabon despite request return southern guinea.

ture died in captivity on island in ogooué river, near ndjolé on june 2, 1900, following bout of pneumonia. tomb @ camayanne mausoleum, within gardens of conakry grand mosque.