French Guinea was a French colonial possession in West Africa

West Africa

West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...

. Its borders, while changed over time, were in 1958 those of the independent nation of Guinea

Guinea

Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...

.

French Guinea was established in 1891, taking the same borders as the previous colony of Rivières du Sud

Rivières du Sud

Rivières du Sud was a French colonial division in West Africa, roughly corresponding to modern coastal sections of Guinea...

 (1882–1891). Prior to 1882, the coastal portions of French Guinea were part of the French colony of Senegal

History of Senegal

The History of Senegal is commonly divided into a number of periods, encompassing the prehistoric era, the precolonial period, colonialism, and the contemporary era.- Paleolithic :...

.

In 1891, Rivières du Sud was placed under the colonial lieutenant governor at Dakar

Dakar

Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...

, who had authority over the French coastal regions east to Porto-Novo

Porto-Novo

Porto-Novo is the official capital of the West African nation of Benin, and was the capital of French Dahomey. The commune covers an area of 110 square kilometres and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people.Porto-Novo is a port on an inlet of the Gulf of Guinea, in the southeastern portion...

 (modern Benin

Benin

Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...

).