History+Before+1960+(Charlotte)

=History of Senegal, Before 1960= By Charlotte Here is a map of the Mali Empire. Here is a picture of the Goree Island slave trade center today. Here is a map of the present day countries in Africa that French West Africa included.
 * In 800 BCE, nomads came to the area now called Senegal.
 * In 300 CE, ancient civilaztions were established in Senegal.
 * The Ghana Empire took up parts of present day Senegal around 750. This empire was dominated by the Soninke. The Soninke were Mande- speaking people who lived near the Sahara (in Senegal). The capital of the Ghana Empire was the Soninke city of Kumbi Saleh.
 * In the 11th century, the Ghana Empire broke up into small kingdoms.
 * Three of these kingdoms were the Mali Empire, the Tekrur Kingdom and the Jolof Empire. The Mali Empire was at its highest point in the 1300s, the time when the kindom established Timbuktu. In the 8th to 11th centuries, the Tekrur Kingdom controlled parts of northern Senegal. The Jolof Empire was at its peak in the 13th and 14th centuries, but it broke up in the 16th century.
 * In 1445, the Portugese came to Senegal. They started trading posts on the coast. They traded things like textiles, metals and horses in exchange for gold, ivory and slaves.
 * In the 1500s, the slave trade was established. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, millions of Senegalese people would be sent to the Americas to work as slaves. The most major slave trade center was the Goree Island center, started by the Dutch West Indies Company in 1617.
 * The Portugese were pushed out of Senegal by 1600. The French and the Dutch had taken their spot.
 * In 1659, Saint- Louis was founded by the Senegal River. It was founded by the French, who had a claim on parts of Senegal's northern coast.
 * However, Great Britain was also interested in Senegal. They took control of the Goree Island trading post in the late 1600s. Unfortunately, the post was soon taken over by the French, and then the French and English drove the Dutch out.
 * During the mid 1700s to early 1800s, the French and English had an ongoing fight over the trading posts in Senegal (Goree Island and Saint- Louis).
 * French officially acquired Senegal through the Treaty of Paris in 1814. This treaty was signed with Great Britain, to end the fight for Senegal. The treaty gave the French Senegal and the British The Gambia.
 * When French took control of Senegal, they tried to abolish slavery, although it didn't happen officially until 1848. Instead of slave trade, the French began to focus on cash crops such as cotton and peanuts. They also began to use some of the native natural resources to make money. They started to produce gum arabic, which is made by the acacia tree and was used in food processing and ink manufacture.
 * By 1840, there were still some civilizations the French had yet to conquer, such as Tekrur and Jolof. Between 1840 and 1865, the French conquered the rest of Senegal.
 * In 1895, the French make Senegal part of an establishment called French West Africa. This included 7 other French territories, including present day Mali and present day Guinea. The capital of French West Africa was Saint- Louis, Senegal.
 * During France's control of Senegal, it made some major economic developments, such as building 2 railroads.
 * In areas such as Goree, Rusfique and Saint-Louis, the Senegalese people had the right to elect a deputy to the French National Assembly.
 * Dakar replaces Saint- Louis as the capital of French West Africa in 1902.
 * During World War II, soldiers from Senegal fought for France. Fighting for France's freedom made the people living in French West Africa want more freedoms. They wanted more of a say in the government.
 * To satisfy the people, in 1946 France passed a new constitution. It created a new type of government for French- controlled areas. The federation was called the French Union, and was made up former colonies and territories, including French West Africa. The citizens of the countries in the French Union had all the legal rights of French citizens. The people living in Senegal were permitted to run for a seat in the French National Assembly and be part of local governments.
 * In 1958, the French passed another constitution, replacing the French Union with the French Community. This civilization included present day Senegal, Chad, Congo, Gabon and the Malagasy Republic. The difference between the French Union and the French Community was that members of the French Community were allowed to govern themselves, but the French still had control over a lot of major things.
 * The French Community did not last very long. It split in 1959. In April of that year, the Federation of Mali was formed by independent Senegal and French Sudan. This partnership did not last very long either. The leaders of the two former territories could not agree on a system of government for the Federation of Mali. The Federation broke up in August of 1960, making Senegal an independent state.

Bibliography

//Lands and Peoples//. Danbury, Connecticut: Grolier Incorporated, 2003. Print.

Mulroy, Tanya. //Senegal//. Stockton, New Jersey: Mason Crest Publishers, 2008. Print.

"Republic of Senegal HIstory." //CultureGrams World Edition//. ProQuest, 2010. Web. 9 Mar. 2010. .