Kenedougou Kingdom

Origins

Kenedougou formed among Senufo farming communities in what is now southern Mali and western Burkina Faso, where Dyula traders of the Traore clan established a ruling dynasty, traditionally from the late 17th century. For long it was a loose chiefdom; it became a strong kingdom only in the 19th century, when Tieba Traore expanded it and moved the capital to Sikasso.

Rule and society

Its kings ruled through a court of warriors, Senufo village chiefs and a Muslim Dyula merchant class, while most subjects kept Senufo traditional religion. Sikasso was ringed by a massive earthen tata wall several kilometres long. Kenedougou drew wealth from kola, cattle and the trade between the savanna and the forest, and bought firearms through the Atlantic trade.

Decline and legacy

Samori Toure besieged Sikasso in 1887 and 1888 without success, and Tieba allied with the French. His brother Babemba Traore refused French demands, and on 1 May 1898 a French column stormed the city; Babemba died rather than surrender. The land became part of French Sudan.