Battle of Togbao
Encyclopedia
On October 10, 1898 a French
military expedition commanded by the Lieutenant de vaisseau Henri Bretonnet
and the Lt. Solomon Braun
left France directed to Chad
, at the time dominated by the Muslim
warlord Rabih az-Zubayr
. With the missions were the envoys of the Muslim rulers Mohammed al-Senoussi and Abd ar Rahman Gwaranga, sultan of Baguirmi
, whom captain Émile Gentil
had brought to France a few months earlier.
Shortly after Bretonnet's departure, news arrived that Rabih was attacking Baguirmi to punish it for its alliance with France; as a result, Bretonnet was ordered to reach the high course of the Ubangi River
, and their unite with the Baguirmians and wait for instructions and reinforcements.
Passing first by the Congo River
and then by the lands controlled by Mohammed al-Senoussi, Bretonnet reached on June 15 the French post of Kouno and met with the king of Baguirmi Gaourang. He wrote on July 8, 1899 a letter to Emile Gentil, that headed another expedition proceeding shortly behind, in which he wrote that he did not trust the rumours that Rabih in person was marching on Kouno, but all the same asked Gentil to send him Captain Julien with his 130-strong company.
Even when Bretonnet was forced to admit that Rabih was pointing to Kouno, he grossly underestimated the strength of Rabih, claiming in one of his last letters that he only had out-of-date musket
s. Instead Rabih had, in Gentil's opinion, a thousand repeating rifle
s, 500 muzzle loading rifle
s and at least 1500 other firearms.
When Rabih arrived at Kouno on July 16, he could count on 2,700 rifles and 10,000 auxiliaries armed with lances and bows. Against them the Bretonnet mission was no match: it consisted of five Frenchmen (the officers Bretonnet, Braun, Durand-Autier, Martin), 44 Senegal
ese tirailleur
s, two Arab
s, 20 armed Bakongo
s, 3 cannons and 400 Baguirmians led by Abd ar Rahman Gwaranga.
Bretonnet chose to evacuate Kouno and position himself at the nearby hills of Togbao, using the slopes to strengthen his defensive position. On the morning of the next day, July 17, Rabih attacked at 8:00; the first attack was repulsed, but Solomon Braun
was killed and Bretonnet wounded so badly he was forced to cede command to lieutenant Durand-Autier. While the second attack was also repulsed, it subjected the Baguirmians to heavy pressure, who began to flee their positions; at this point the third and last assault came, which completely annihilated Bretonnet's column. Gwaranga saved himself fleeing, but not before being wounded, with other Baguirmians.
Of Bretonnet's mission only three Senegalese survived, who were made prisoners and brought for questioning to Rabih. Bretonnet's three cannons were captured, although they were recovered by the French a year later, during the battle of Kousséri. One of the prisoners, the sergeant Samba Sall, escaped a few days later and reached the village of Gaoura, where on 16 August he met the Gentil Mission, and informed them of the disaster.
The victory was to prove hollow for Rabih, for it only strengthened French determination to remove Rabih. Three distinct expeditions marched to southern Chad in 1900, and met at Kousséri
to confront Rabih. This was the battle of Kousséri
in which Rabih was killed and French possession of Chad guaranteed.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
military expedition commanded by the Lieutenant de vaisseau Henri Bretonnet
Henri Bretonnet
Henri-Etienne Bretonnet was a French naval officer, killed with most of his men in the battle of Togbao.Bretonnet entered in the navy by attending the École Navale, the Navy Academy in charge of the education of the officers of the French Navy...
and the Lt. Solomon Braun
Solomon Braun
Solomon Braun was a French lieutenant of artillery, born at Paris in 1868 and died in Togbao, Chad, in 1899. His father, a poor pedler, observing Solomon's capacity for learning, made the greatest sacrifices to give him a good education. Solomon successfully passed the competitive examination for...
left France directed to Chad
Chad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
, at the time dominated by the Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
warlord Rabih az-Zubayr
Rabih az-Zubayr
Rabih az-Zubayr ibn Fadl Allah or Rabih Fadlallah , usually known as Rabah in French, was a Sudanese warlord and slave trader who established a powerful empire west of Lake Chad, in today's Chad....
. With the missions were the envoys of the Muslim rulers Mohammed al-Senoussi and Abd ar Rahman Gwaranga, sultan of Baguirmi
Kingdom of Baguirmi
The Kingdom of Baguirmi, also known as the Baguirmi Sultanate , was an Islamic kingdom or sultanate that existed as an independent state during the 16th and 17th centuries southeast of Lake Chad in what is now the country of Chad. Baguirmi emerged to the southeast of the Kanem-Bornu Empire. The...
, whom captain Émile Gentil
Émile Gentil
Émile Gentil was a French colonial administrator, naval officer, and colonial military leader.Born at Volmunster in the department of Moselle, he later attended the École Navale, the school that formed French naval officers. As an ensign, he was assigned to conduct hydrographic soundings along the...
had brought to France a few months earlier.
Shortly after Bretonnet's departure, news arrived that Rabih was attacking Baguirmi to punish it for its alliance with France; as a result, Bretonnet was ordered to reach the high course of the Ubangi River
Ubangi River
The Ubangi River , also spelled Oubangui, is the largest right-bank tributary of the Congo River of Central Africa. It begins at the confluence of the Mbomou and Uele Rivers and flows west, then bends to the southwest and passes through Bangui, after which it flows south to the Congo at Liranga....
, and their unite with the Baguirmians and wait for instructions and reinforcements.
Passing first by the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
and then by the lands controlled by Mohammed al-Senoussi, Bretonnet reached on June 15 the French post of Kouno and met with the king of Baguirmi Gaourang. He wrote on July 8, 1899 a letter to Emile Gentil, that headed another expedition proceeding shortly behind, in which he wrote that he did not trust the rumours that Rabih in person was marching on Kouno, but all the same asked Gentil to send him Captain Julien with his 130-strong company.
Even when Bretonnet was forced to admit that Rabih was pointing to Kouno, he grossly underestimated the strength of Rabih, claiming in one of his last letters that he only had out-of-date musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s. Instead Rabih had, in Gentil's opinion, a thousand repeating rifle
Repeating rifle
A repeating rifle is a single barreled rifle containing multiple rounds of ammunition. These rounds are loaded from a magazine by means of a manual or automatic mechanism, and the action that reloads the rifle also typically recocks the firing action...
s, 500 muzzle loading rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s and at least 1500 other firearms.
When Rabih arrived at Kouno on July 16, he could count on 2,700 rifles and 10,000 auxiliaries armed with lances and bows. Against them the Bretonnet mission was no match: it consisted of five Frenchmen (the officers Bretonnet, Braun, Durand-Autier, Martin), 44 Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
ese tirailleur
Tirailleur
Tirailleur literally means a shooting skirmisher in French from tir—shot. The term dates back to the Napoleonic period where it was used to designate light infantry trained to skirmish ahead of the main columns...
s, two Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
s, 20 armed Bakongo
Kongo people
The Bakongo or the Kongo people , also sometimes referred to as Kongolese or Congolese, is a Bantu ethnic group which lives along the Atlantic coast of Africa from Pointe-Noire to Luanda, Angola...
s, 3 cannons and 400 Baguirmians led by Abd ar Rahman Gwaranga.
Bretonnet chose to evacuate Kouno and position himself at the nearby hills of Togbao, using the slopes to strengthen his defensive position. On the morning of the next day, July 17, Rabih attacked at 8:00; the first attack was repulsed, but Solomon Braun
Solomon Braun
Solomon Braun was a French lieutenant of artillery, born at Paris in 1868 and died in Togbao, Chad, in 1899. His father, a poor pedler, observing Solomon's capacity for learning, made the greatest sacrifices to give him a good education. Solomon successfully passed the competitive examination for...
was killed and Bretonnet wounded so badly he was forced to cede command to lieutenant Durand-Autier. While the second attack was also repulsed, it subjected the Baguirmians to heavy pressure, who began to flee their positions; at this point the third and last assault came, which completely annihilated Bretonnet's column. Gwaranga saved himself fleeing, but not before being wounded, with other Baguirmians.
Of Bretonnet's mission only three Senegalese survived, who were made prisoners and brought for questioning to Rabih. Bretonnet's three cannons were captured, although they were recovered by the French a year later, during the battle of Kousséri. One of the prisoners, the sergeant Samba Sall, escaped a few days later and reached the village of Gaoura, where on 16 August he met the Gentil Mission, and informed them of the disaster.
The victory was to prove hollow for Rabih, for it only strengthened French determination to remove Rabih. Three distinct expeditions marched to southern Chad in 1900, and met at Kousséri
Kousséri
Kousséri is a city in Far North Province, Cameroon, lying on the border with Chad, across the Chari River from N'Djamena. It is the capital of the Logone-et-Chari department. It is a market town, and its population has recently been swollen by refugees from Chad. It had a population of 89,123 at...
to confront Rabih. This was the battle of Kousséri
Battle of Kousséri
The battle of Kousséri originated in French plans to occupy the Chari-Baguirmi region. In 1899–1900, the French organized three armed columns, one proceeding north from Congo, one east from Niger and another south from Algeria...
in which Rabih was killed and French possession of Chad guaranteed.