Battle of Lougou

Infobox Military Conflict


caption=
conflict=Battle of Lougou
partof=the scramble for Africa
date=April 16 1899
place=Lougou, near Dogondoutchi
result=French victory
combatant1=Azna
combatant2=flagicon|FranceFrance
commander1=Sarraounia
commander2=Paul Voulet
strength1=Unknown, without firearms
strength2=near 600 riflemen
casualties1=Unknown
casualties2=4 dead
6 wounded

The French Voulet-Chanoine Mission, led by the captains Paul Voulet and Julien Chanoine, had been dispatched in 1898 to Africa by the French government with the mission to conquer the territories between the Niger River and Lake Chad and join in uniting French territories in West Africa. After leaving French Sudan in January 1899, they ruthlessly subjected the native peoples, meeting little resistance.

One of the few to resist was the sorcerer queen Sarraounia, ruler of the "Azna", a pagan people in a long Islamized region. Determinated to bar the expedition's road, Sarraounia wrote to Voulet a provocative letter full of insults; the French took up the challenge, and on April 15 left the camp marching towards the villages of Lougou and Tougana, where Sarraounia had concentrated her forces.

The day after, at 6:00, started what Lt. Paul Joalland called "one of the hottest moment of the campaign". The French found the enemy assembled on the field, while women and children had already retired themselves in a small thick and almost impenetrable bush where the Azna defended themselves when facing a superior enemy. After the Azna had started to sisperse under the French gunfire, their lines broke when hit by three grapeshot balls; the Azna then retreated in the bush, where the thick foliage partly protected the natives from the gunfire.

The French felt that if left there, the Azna may attack them at night; so it was decideed to assault the bush, but being careful to leave a way of escape for the Azna open, so to avoid a too deadly confrontation that could cost too much blood. The French met a strong resistance, killing 2 riflemen and wounding 4, but were at the end successful and forced the Azna to escape.

The battle had protracted itself till 13:00, and among the French tirailleurs 4 were killed and 6 wounded, with 7,000 cartridges consummed.

References

*cite journal | author=Logéat, Yvon| title = Version grecque | journal = Atala | issue = 3 | year = 2003 | url = http://www.lycee-chateaubriand.fr/cru-atala/publications/logeat_antiquite.htm