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{{History of Senegal}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
[[File:Guillaume Delisle Senegambia 1707.jpg|thumb|350px|A map by [[Guillaume Delisle]] (1770)]]
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==

The earliest evidence of human life is found in the valley of the [[Falémé River|Falémé]] in the south-east.<ref>Unless otherwise stated, the material in this part is based on Ndiouga Benga and on Mandiomé Thiam, "prehistory prehistory and history", in ''Atlas du Sénégal, op. cit.'', p. 74</ref>

The presence of man in the [[Lower Paleolithic]] is attested by the discovery of [[Archaeological industry|stone tools]] characteristic of [[Acheulean]] such as [[hand axe]]s reported by [[Théodore Monod]]<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[Théodore Monod]], « Sur la découverte du Paléolithique ancien à Dakar », ''Bulletin du Comité d'études historiques et scientifiques de l'AOF'', t. XXI, 1938, pp. 518–519</ref> at the tip of [[Fann-Point E-Amitié|Fann]] in the peninsula of [[Cap-Vert]] in 1938, or cleavers found in the south-east.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Abdoulaye Camara et Bertrand Duboscq, ''La préhistoire dans le Sud-Est du Sénégal, Actes du 2<sup>e</sup> Colloque de Kédougou, 18–22 fév. 1985'', Doc. du CRA du Musée de l'Homme (Paris), n° 11, 1987, pp. 19–48</ref> There were also found stones shaped by the [[Levallois technique]], characteristic of the [[Middle Paleolithic]]. [[Mousterian]] Industry is represented mainly by [[Scraper (archaeology)|scraper]]s found in the peninsula of Cap-Vert, as well in the low and middle valleys of the [[Senegal River|Senegal]] and the Falémé. Some pieces are explicitly linked to hunting, like those found in [[Tiémassass]], near [[M'Bour]], a controversial site that some claim belongs to the [[Upper Paleolithic]],<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Th. Dagan, « Le Site préhistorique de Tiémassas (Sénégal) », ''Bulletin de l'Institut français d'Afrique noire'', 1956, pp. 432–448</ref> while other argue in favor of the [[Neolithic]].<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Cyr Descamps, « Quelques réflexions sur le Néolithique du Sénégal », ''West African Journal of Archaeology'', 1981, vol. 10–11, pp. 145–151</ref>

==Neolithic==

In Senegambia, the period when humans became hunters, fishermen and producers (farmer and artisan) are all well represented and studied. This is when more elaborate objects and [[ceramic]]s<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Mandiomé Thiam, ''La céramique au Sénégal : Archéologie et Histoire'', Université de Paris I, 1991, 464 pages (thèse de doctorat)</ref> emerged. But gray areas remain. Although the characteristics and manifestations of civilization from the [[Neolithic]] have been identified their origins and relationship have not yet fully defined.
What can be distinguished is:
*The dig of Cape Manuel: the Neolithic deposit Manueline Dakar was discovered in 1940.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} « Le gisement du Cap Manuel », conférence de Cyr Descamps, en ligne {{cite web |url=http://paleoassociation.ifrance.com/manu/manu.html |title=Le Gisement du Cap Manuel (Dakar, Sénégal) |access-date=2010-07-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100218103840/http://paleoassociation.ifrance.com/manu/manu.html |archive-date=18 February 2010  }}</ref> [[Basalt]] rocks including ankaramite were used for making microlithic tools such as axes or planes. Such tools have been found at [[Gorée]] and the [[Magdalen Islands]], indicating the activity of [[shipbuilding]] by nearby fishermen.
*The dig of [[Hann Bel-Air|Bel-Air]]: Neolithic Bélarien tools, usually made out of [[flint]], are present in the dunes of the west, near the current capital. In addition to axes, [[adze]]s and pottery, there is also a statuette, the [[Venus Thiaroye]]<ref>{{in lang|es}} « Prehistoria de África: Manifestaciones artísticas. Esculturas. Senegal » [https://web.archive.org/web/20091027133214/http://es.geocities.com/contraandrocentrismo/afric.preh.html]</ref>
*The dig of Khant: the Khanty creek, located in the north near [[Kayar]] in the lower valley of the [[Senegal River]], gave its name to a Neolithic industry which mainly uses bone and wood.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Marie-Amy Mbow, « Le site archéologique du Khant (région de Saint-Louis du Sénégal) : nouveaux éléments », ''[[Présence africaine]]'', 1998, n° 158, pp. 7–22</ref> This deposit is on the list of closed sites and monuments of Senegal.<ref name="Arrêté">{{cite web|url=http://www.culture.gouv.sn/article.php3?id_article=335|title=Arrêté n° 12.09.2007 portant publication de la liste des sites et monuments historiques classés|publisher= Ministre de la Culture et du Patrimoine historique classé|date=12 September 2007|access-date=2 July 2008|language=fr|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220103534/http://www.culture.gouv.sn/article.php3?id_article=335|archive-date=20 February 2012}}</ref>
*The dig the [[Falémé River|Falémé]] located in the south-east of Senegal, has uncovered a Neolithic Falemian tools industry that produced polished materials as diverse as [[sandstone]], [[hematite]], [[shale]], [[quartz]], and [[flint]]. Grinding equipment and pottery from the period are well represented at the site.
*The Neolithic civilization of the Senegal River valley and the [[Ferlo]] are the least well known due to not always being separated.

==Prehistory==

In the case of Senegal, the periodization of [[prehistory]] remains controversial. It is often described as beginning with the age of [[metallurgy]], thus placing it between the first [[metalworking]] and the appearance of [[writing]]. Other approaches exist such as that of Guy Thilmans and his team in 1980,<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Guy Thilmans, Cyr Descamps et B. Khayat, ''Protohistoire du Sénégal : recherches archéologiques'', tome 1 : ''Les Sites Mégalithiques'', IFAN, Dakar, 1980, 158 pages</ref> who felt that any archeology from pre-colonial could be attached to that designation or that of [[Hamady Bocoum]], who speaks of "Historical Archaeology" from the 4th century, at least for the former [[Tekrur]].<ref>See his third thesis supported at the Sorbonne in 1986, ''La Métallurgie du fer au Sénégal'' et ses travaux des années 1990 on this topic</ref>

A variety of archaeological remains have been found:
* On the coast and in river estuaries of the [[Senegal (river)|Senegal]], [[Saloum]], [[Gambia (river)|Gambia]], and [[Casamance River|Casamance]] rivers, burial mounds with clusters of shells often referred to as [[middens]]. 217 of these clusters have been identified in the [[Saloum Delta]] alone,<ref name="Arrêté"/> for example in  [[Joal-Fadiouth]],<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Edmond Dioh et Mathieu Gueye, « Les amas coquilliers de la lagune de Joal-Fadiouth (région de Thiès) », dans ''Senegalia'', op. cit., pp. 323–328.</ref> Mounds in the Saloum Delta have been dated back as far as 400 BCE, and part of the Saloum Delta is now a [[World Heritage Site]]. Funerary sites or tumuli were built there during the 8th to 16th centuries.<ref>{{cite web|title=Saloum Delta|url=http://worldheritagesite.org/sites/saloum.html|publisher=World Heritage Site|access-date=29 August 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006153656/http://worldheritagesite.org/sites/saloum.html|archive-date=6 October 2012}}</ref> They are also found in the north near [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|Saint-Louis]],<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Annie Ravisé, ''Contribution à l'étude des Kjökkenmöddinger (amas artificiels de coquillages) dans la région de Saint-Louis'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1969 (mémoire de Maîtrise)</ref> and in the estuary of the Casamance.<ref>Olga Linares de Sapir, « Shell middens of lower Casamance and problems of Diola protohistory », ''West African Journal of Archaeology'', Oxford University Press, Ibadan, 1971, vol. I, pp. 23–54.</ref>
*The West is rich in burial mounds of sand that the [[Wolof people|Wolof]] refer to as ''mbanaar'', which translates to "graves",<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Jean-Léopold Diouf, ''Dictionnaire wolof-français et français-wolof'', Paris: Karthala, 2003, p. 216.</ref>  A solid gold [[Gorget|pectoral]] of mass 191 g has also been discovered near [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|Saint-Louis]].<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[Raymond Mauny]], ''Tableau géographique de l'Ouest africain au Moyen-Âge d'après les sources écrites, la tradition et l'archéologie'', Amsterdam: Swets et Zeitlinger, 1967, p. 163.</ref>

[[File:MégalitheSénégal.jpg|thumb|Megalithic alignments in Senegal]]

*In a huge area of nearly {{formatnum:33000}}&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> located in the center-south around the Gambia there have been found alignments of boulders known as the [[Stone Circles of Senegambia]] which were placed on the list of [[UNESCO World Heritage]] sites in 2006.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/fr/list/1226|title=Cercles mégalithiques de Sénégambie|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=2 July 2008|language=fr}}</ref> Two of these sites are located within the territory of Senegal: [[Sine Ngayène]]<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Augustin Holl et [[Hamady Bocoum]], « Variabilité des pratiques funéraires dans le mégalithisme sénégambien : le cas de Sine Ngayène », dans ''Senegalia'', op. cit., pp.&nbsp;224–234</ref> and Sine Wanar, both located in the [[Nioro du Rip Department]]. Sine Ngayène has 52 stone circles including a double circle. At Wanar, they number 24 and the stones are smaller. There are stone-carved lyre in the [[laterite]], Y- or A-shaped.
*The existence of proto-historic ruins in the middle Senegal River valley was confirmed in the late 1970s.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Bruno Chavane, ''Recherches archéologiques dans la moyenne vallée du fleuve Sénégal'', 1979 (thèse)</ref> Pottery, perforated [[ceramic]] discs <ref>{{in lang|fr}} Guy Thilmans, « Les disques perforés en céramique des sites protohistoriques du fleuve Sénégal », ''Notes africaines'', n° 162, 1979, pp.&nbsp;29–35.</ref> or ornaments have been unearthed. Excavations at thé site of Sinthiou Bara,<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Guy Thilmans et Annie Ravisé, ''Protohistoire du Sénégal, Recherches archéologique, tome II, Sinthiou-Bara et les sites du Fleuve'', 1983, Dakar, 213 pages (mémoire [[Institut fondamental d'Afrique noire|IFAN]])</ref> near [[Matam, Senegal|Matam]], have proved particularly fruitful. They have revealed, for example, the flow of trans-Saharan trade from distant parts of North Africa.

==Early inhabitants==
[[File:Buur Sine Kumba Ndoffene Fa Ndeb Joof.jpg|thumb|right|[[Maad a Sinig Kumba Ndoffene Fa Ndeb Joof]]. King of [[Kingdom of Sine|Sine]]. [[The Royal House of Boureh Gnilane Joof]].]]

In the absence of written sources and monumental ruins in this region, the history of the early centuries of the modern era must be based primarily on archaeological excavations, the writing of early Arab geographers and travelers, and data derived from oral tradition. Combining these data suggests that Senegal was first populated from the north and east in several waves of migration, the last being that of the [[Wolof people|Wolof]], the [[Fulani]] and the [[Serer people|Serer]] who dominate the area today. Oral traditions relate that in much of northern Senegal [[Mande people]] were the earliest inhabitants, although archaeological evidence of this is slim.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fall |first1=Mamadou |editor1-last=Fall |editor1-first=Mamadou |editor2-last=Fall |editor2-first=Rokhaya |editor3-last=Mane |editor3-first=Mamadou |title=Bipolarisation du Senegal du XVIe - XVIIe siécle |date=2021 |publisher=HGS Editions |location=Dakar |page=28 |language=French |chapter=Les Terroirs Historiques et la Poussée Soninké}}</ref>  Africanist historian Donald R. Wright has suggested that place-names in the [[Gambia]] and [[Casamance]] regions indicate "that the earliest inhabitants might be identified most closely with one of several related groups—Bainunk, Kasanga, Beafada... To these were added Serer, who moved southward during the first millennium A.D. from the Senegal River valley, and Mande-speaking peoples, who arrived later still from the east."<ref>{{cite book|last=Wright|first=Donald|title=The World and a Very Small Place in Africa: A History of Globalization in Niumi, the Gambia|year=2010|edition=3rd|publisher=M.E. Sharpe|isbn=978-0765624840|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mviA4coG24sC&pg=PA69|page=51}}</ref> He also cautions, however, that attempting to project modern-day ethnic definitions onto people who lived hundreds or thousands of years ago is at best highly speculative and at worst counterproductive.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wright |first1=Donald |title=Beyond Migration and Conquest: Oral Traditions and Mandinka Ethnicity in Senegambia |journal=History in Africa |date=1985 |volume=12 |pages=335–348 |doi=10.2307/3171727 |jstor=3171727 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3171727|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Kingdoms and empires==
[[File:Empire ghana.png|thumb|left|Location of the [[Ghana Empire]]]]

The medieval history of the Sahel is characterized by the consolidation of settlements into large state entities&nbsp;– the [[Ghana Empire]], the [[Mali Empire]] and the [[Songhai Empire]]. The cores of these great empires were located on the territory of the current [[Republic of Mali]], so current-day Senegal occupied a peripheral position.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Gerti Hesseling, ''Histoire politique du Sénégal. Institutions, droit et société'', Paris: Karthala, 1985, p. 103.</ref>

The earliest of these empires is that of Ghana, probably founded in the [[first millennium]] by [[Soninke people|Soninke]] and whose  [[animism|animist]] populations subsisted by agriculture and trade across the Sahara,<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Mahamadou Maiga, ''Le bassin du fleuve Sénégal&nbsp;– De la traite négrière au développement sous-régional autocentré'', Paris: L’Harmattan, 1995, p. 20.</ref> including gold, salt and cloth. Its area of influence slowly spread to regions between the river valleys of the [[Senegal River|Senegal]] and [[Niger River|Niger]].

A contemporary empire of Ghana, but less extensive, the kingdom of [[Tekrur]] was its vassal. Ghana and Tekrur were the only organized populations before Islamization. The territory of Tekrur approximates that of the current [[Fouta Toro]]. Its existence in the 9th century is attested by Arabic manuscripts. The formation of the state may have taken place as an influx of [[Fula people|Fulani]] from the east settled in the Senegal valley.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hrbek|first=I.|series=[[General History of Africa]] |title=volume 3: Africa from the 7th to the 11th Century: (abridged)|year=1992|publisher=James Carey|isbn=978-0852550939|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qDFcD0BuekQC&pg=PA67|page=67}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Creevey|first=Lucy|title=Islam, Women and the Role of the State in Senegal|journal=Journal of Religion in Africa|date=August 1996|volume=26|issue=3|pages=268–307|jstor=1581646|doi=10.1163/157006696x00299}}</ref> [[John Donnelly Fage]] suggests that Takrur was formed through the interaction of Berbers from the Sahara and "Negro agricultural peoples" who were "essentially Serer" although its kings after 1000 CE might have been Soninke (northern Mande).<ref>{{cite book|last=Fage|first=John Donnelly|title=The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 3|year=1997|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0521209816|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qwg8GV6aibkC&pg=PA483|editor=Roland Oliver|chapter=Upper and Lower Guinea|page=484}}</ref> The name, borrowed from Arabic writings, may be linked to that of the ethnicity [[Toucouleur people|Toucouleur]].<ref>{{in lang|fr}} « Discussion sur les croisements ethniques », séance du 2 février 1865, ''Bulletin de la société d'anthropologie'', tome 6, fasc. 4, p. 67.</ref> Trade with the Arabs was prevalent. The Kingdom imported [[wool]], [[copper]] and [[pearl]]s and exported gold and [[slaves]].<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Gerti Hesseling, ''op. cit.'', p. 104.</ref> Indeed, the growth of a vast empire by Arab-Muslim [[Jihad]]s is not devoid of economic and political issues and brought in its wake the first real growth of the [[History of slavery|slave trade]]. This trade called the [[trans-Saharan slave trade]] provided North Africa and [[Sahara|Saharan Africa]] with slave labor. The Tekrur were among the first converts to [[Islam]], certainly before 1040.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Raymond Mauny, ''op. cit.'', p. 523</ref>

[[File:WolofWaalo.jpg|thumb|left|[[Wolof people|Wolof]] of [[Waalo]], in "war costume" (1846)]]
[[File:MALI empire BLANK.PNG|thumb|Extension of the [[Mali Empire]] at its height]]

Two other major political entities were formed and grew during the 13th and 14th century: the [[Mali Empire]] and the [[Jolof Empire]] which become the vassal of the first in its heyday. Originating in the Mandinka invasion, Mali continued to expand, encompassing first eastern Senegal, and later almost all the present territory. Founded in the 14th century by the possibly mythical chief of the Wolof [[Ndiadiane Ndiaye]],<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Samba Lampsar Sall, ''Njajaan Njaay. Les mythes de fondation de l'Empire du Djolof'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1982, 157 pages (Mémoire de Maîtrise)</ref> who was a Serer of [[Waalo]] (Ndiaye is originally a Serer surname<ref>William J. Foltz. From French West Africa to the Mali Federation, Volume 12 of Yale studies in political science, p136. Published by Yale University Press, 1965</ref>
<ref>Both Ndiadiane's name and surname are Serer in origin. For the surname Njie or Ndiaye which Ndiadiane Ndiaye got his name from see Cheikh Anta Diop and Egbuna P. Modum. "Towards the African renaissance: essays in African culture & development", 1946–1960, p28. Published by Karnak House (1996). {{ISBN|0-907015-85-9}}</ref><ref>The name comes from the Serer language. See: Victoria Bomba Coifman. ''History of the Wolof state of Jolof until 1860 including comparative data from the Wolof state of Walo'', University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1969, p. 276.</ref><ref>See also: Godfrey Mwakikagile. ''Gambia and Its People: Ethnic Identities and Cultural Integration in Africa'', p. 94.</ref><ref>Mam Kumba Njie (or Ndiaye) is a Serer Goddess in the [[Serer religion]] as well as the [[Almoravid]] invasion of [[Tekrur]]. See Henry Gravrand. "La Civilisation Sereer", ''Pangool'', p. 91. See also:
*Ed Hindson & Ergun Caner. ''The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics: Surveying the Evidence for the Truth of Christianity'', p. 21. Harvest House Publishers, 2008. {{ISBN|0-7369-2084-6}}</ref> which is also found among the Wolof). Djolof expanded its dominance of small chiefdoms south of the Senegal River ([[Waalo]], [[Cayor]], [[Baol]], [[Kingdom of Sine|Sine]]&nbsp;– [[Kingdom of Saloum|Saloum]]), bringing together all the Senegambia to which he gave religious and social unity:{{dubious|date=April 2012}} the "Grand Djolof" <ref>{{in lang|fr}} Jean Boulègue, ''Le grand Jolof, XIII<sup>e</sup>-XVI<sup>e</sup> siècle'', vol. 1: ''Les Anciens Royaumes Wolof'', Façades, Blois; Paris: Karthala, 207 pp.</ref>  which collapsed in 1550.

The Jolof Empire was founded by a voluntary confederacy of States; it was not an empire built on military conquest in spite of what the word "empire" implies.<ref name="Charles"/><ref name="Ham"/> The Serer tradition of Sine attests that the [[Kingdom of Sine]] never paid tribute to Ndiadiane Ndiaye nor to any member of his descendants that ruled Djolof. Historian [[Sylviane Diouf]] states that "Each vassal kingdom—Walo, Takrur, Kayor, Baol, Sine, Salum, Wuli, and Niani—recognized the hegemony of Jolof and paid tribute."<ref>[[Sylviane Diouf|Diouf, Sylviane]], ''Servants of Allah: African Muslims enslaved in the Americas'' (New York: New York University Press, 1998), 19</ref> It went on to state that, Ndiadiane Ndiaye himself received his name from the mouth of [[Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali Jaxateh Manneh|Maissa Wali]] (the King of Sine).<ref name="Diouf">Diouf, Niokhobaye. "Chronique du royaume du Sine" par suivie de Notes sur les traditions orales et les sources écrites concernant le royaume du Sine par Charles Becker et Victor Martin. Bulletin de l'Ifan, Tome 34, Série B, n° 4, 1972. p706</ref> In the epics of Ndiadiane and Maissa Wali, it is well acknowledged that Maissa Wali was pivotal in the founding of this Empire.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} It was he who nominated Ndiadiane Ndiaye and called for the other  states to join this confederacy, which they did, and the "empire" headed by Ndiadiane, who took residence at Djolof.<ref name="Diouf"/><ref>Stride, G.T. & C. Ifeka: "Peoples and Empires of West Africa: West Africa in History 1000–1800" page 22. Nelson, 1971</ref> It is for this reason scholars propose that the empire was more like a voluntary confederacy than an empire built on military conquest.<ref name="Charles">Charles, Eunice A. Precolonial Senegal: the Jolof Kingdom, 1800–1890. African Studies Center, Boston University, 1977. p 3</ref><ref name="Ham">Ham, Anthony. West Africa. Lonely Planet. 2009. p 670. ({{ISBN|1741048214}})</ref>

The arrival of Europeans engendered autonomy of small kingdoms which were under the influence of [[Jolof Empire|Djolof]]. Less dependent on trans-Saharan trade with the new shipping lanes, they turn more readily to trade with the [[New World]]. The decline of these kingdoms can be explained by internal rivalries, then by the arrival of Europeans, who organized the mass exodus of young Africans to the New World.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Gerti Hesseling, ''op. cit.'', p. 105</ref> [[Ghazi warriors|Ghazis]], wars, epidemics and famine afflicted the people, along with the [[Atlantic slave trade]], in exchange for weapons and manufactured goods. Under the influence of [[Islam]], these kingdoms were transformed and [[marabouts]] played an increasing role.

In [[Casamance]], the [[Bainuk people|Baïnounks]], the [[Manjaques]] and [[Diola (people)|Diola]] inhabited the coastal area while the mainland&nbsp;– unified 13th century under the name of [[Kaabu]]&nbsp;– was occupied by the [[Mandinka people|Mandingo]]. In the 15th century, the king of one of the tribes, Kassas gave his name to the region: Kassa [[Mansa (title)|Mansa]] (King of Kassas). Until the French intervention The Casamance was a heterogeneous entity, weakened by internal rivalries.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Djibril Diop, ''Décentralisation et gouvernance locale au Sénégal. Quelle pertinence pour le développement local ?'', Paris: L'Harmattan, 2006, p. 29.</ref>

==The era of trading posts and trafficking==
{{See also|Age of Discovery | Triangular Trade}}
According to several ancient sources, including occasions by the ''Dictionnaire de pédagogie et d'instruction primaire'' by [[Ferdinand Buisson]] in 1887,<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[Ferdinand Buisson|Ferdinand Édouard Buisson]], ''Dictionnaire de pédagogie et d'instruction primaire'', 1887, p. 442.</ref> the first French settlement in Senegal dates back to the [[Dieppe (Seine-Maritime)|Dieppe]] Mariners in the 14th century. Flattering for Norman sailors, this argument gives credence also to the idea of a precedence of the French presence in the region, but it is not confirmed by subsequent work.

In the mid-15th century, several European nations reached the coast of West Africa, vested successively or simultaneously by the Portuguese, the Dutch, the English and French. Europeans first settled along the coasts, on islands in the mouths of rivers and then a little further upstream. They opened trading posts and engaged in the "trade:"&nbsp;– a term which, under the [[Ancien Régime]], means any type of trade (wheat, [[Black pepper|pepper]], [[ivory trade|ivory]]...), and not necessarily, or only, the [[History of slavery|slave trade]],<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[Olivier Pétré-Grenouilleau]], ''Les traites négrières. Documentation photographique'', La Documentation française, n° 8032, 2003.</ref> although this "infamous traffic", as it was called at the end of the 18th century, was indeed at the heart of a new economic order, controlled by powerful companies in [[Privilege (legal ethics)|privilege]].

===The Portuguese navigators===
{{main|Portuguese Empire}}
[[File:Portuguese Empire map.jpg|thumb|350px|Portuguese colonies and posts under the reign of João III, 16th century]]

Encouraged by [[Henry the Navigator]] and always in search of the [[Passage to India]], and not forgetting gold and [[slave]]s, [[Portugal|Portuguese]] explorers explored the African coast and ventured still farther south.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[Joseph Roger de Benoist]] et [[Abdoulaye Camara]] (et al.), ''Histoire de Gorée'', Paris: Maisonneuve et Larose, 2003, p. 12.</ref>

In 1444 [[Dinis Dias]] went off the mouth of the [[Senegal River]] to reach the westernmost point of Africa he calls ''Cabo Verde'', Cape Vert,<ref>This place corresponds to the area of Cape Vert in  [[Senegal]] today and not to the [[îles du Cap-Vert]] which aren't discovered until 1456.</ref> because of the lush vegetation seen there. He also reached the island of [[Gorée]],  referred to by its inhabitants as ''Berzeguiche'', but which he called ''Ilha de Palma'', the island of Palms. The Portuguese did not settle there permanently, but used the site for landing and engaged in commerce in the region. They built a chapel there in 1481.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Joseph Roger de Benoist et Abdoulaye Camara, ''op. cit.'', pp. 15 and 139.</ref> Portuguese trading posts were installed in Tanguegueth <ref>{{in lang|fr}} [[David Boilat|Abbé David Boilat]], « Notice sur Tanguegueth ou Rufisque », ''Esquisses sénégalaises'', Karthala, Paris, 1984 (1st edn 1853), p. 55.</ref> in [[Cayor]], a town they renamed ''Fresco Rio'' (the future [[Rufisque]]) because of the freshness of its sources in the [[Baol]] Sali (later the seaside town of [[Saly]]) which takes the name of ''Portudal'', or to [[Joal]] in the [[Kingdom of Sine]].

They also traversed the lower [[Casamance]]<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Christian Roche, ''Histoire de la Casamance. Conquête et résistance : 1850–1920'', Paris: Karthala, 1985 (1st edn 1976), p. 67</ref> and founded [[Ziguinchor]] in 1645. The introduction of Christianity accompanied this business expansion.

===The Dutch West India Company===
{{main|Senegambia (Dutch West India Company)}}
After the [[Act of Abjuration]] in 1581, the [[Dutch Republic|United Provinces]] flouted the authority of the [[Philip II of Spain|King of Spain]]. They based their growth on maritime trade and expanded their colonial empire in Asia, the [[Americas]] and South Africa. In West Africa trading posts were opened at some points of the current [[Senegal]], [[Gambia]], [[Ghana]] and [[Angola]].

[[File:Het West Indisch Huys - Amsterdam 1655.png|thumb|The [[Dutch West India Company]] at [[Amsterdam]] in 1655]]

Created in 1621, the [[Dutch West India Company]] purchased the island of [[Gorée]] in 1627.<ref>The date of 1617, cited by [[Olfert Dapper]] in ''Description de l'Afrique contenant les noms, la situation & les confins de toutes ses parties, leurs rivières, leurs villes & leurs habitations, leurs plantes & leurs animaux : les moeurs, les coutumes, la langue, les richesses, la religion & le gouvernement de ses peuples : avec des cartes des États, des provinces & des villes, & des figures en taille-douce, qui representent les habits & les principales cérémonies des habitants, les plantes & les animaux les moins connus'', W. Waesberge, Boom et Van Someren, Amsterdam, édition de 1686, p. 229, is reprised in many sources. Implausible, given thé date of creation of the company, it is challenged by two historians of Gorée: J.-R. de Benoist et A. Camara, ''op. cit.'', pp. 15–18</ref> The company built two forts that are in ruins today: in 1628 on the face of Nassau Cove and 1639 at Nassau on the hill, as well as warehouses for goods destined for the mainland trading posts .

In his ''Description of Africa'' (1668), the [[humanism|humanist]] Dutch [[Olfert Dapper]] gives the etymology of the name given to it by his countrymen, ''Goe-ree'' ''Goede Reede'', that is to say "good harbor".,<ref>{{in lang|fr}} Olfert Dapper, ''op. cit.'', p. 229</ref> which is the name of (part of) an island in the Dutch province of Zeeland as well.

The Dutch settlers occupied the island for nearly half a century, dealing in wax, [[amber]], gold, [[ivory]] and also participated in the [[Atlantic slave trade|slave trade]], but kept away from foreign trading posts on the coast. The Dutch were dislodged several times: in 1629 by the Portuguese, in 1645 and 1659 by the French and in 1663 by the English.

===Against the backdrop of Anglo-French rivalry===

The "trade" and the slave trade intensified in the 17th century. In Senegal, the French and British competed mainly on two issues, the island of [[Gorée]] and [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|St. Louis]]. On 10 February 1763 the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris]] ended the [[Seven Years' War]] and reconciled, after three years of negotiations, France, Great Britain and Spain. Great Britain returned the island of Gorée to France. Britain then acquired from France, among many other territories, "the river of Senegal, with forts & trading posts St. Louis, Podor, and Galam and all rights & dependencies of the said River of Senegal.".<ref>[[Wikisource]]: Article 10 of the Treaty of Paris of 1763 [[s:Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris(1763)]]</ref>

Under [[Louis XIII]] and especially [[Louis XIV]], the privileges were quite extensively granted to certain French shipping lines, which still faced many difficulties. In 1626 [[Cardinal Richelieu|Richelieu]] founded the [[Norman Company]], an association of [[Dieppe (Seine-Maritime)|Dieppe]] and [[Rouen]] merchants responsible for the operation in Senegal and [[the Gambia]]. It was dissolved in 1658 and its assets were acquired by the [[Company of Cape Vert and Senegal]], itself expropriated following the creation by [[Jean-Baptiste Colbert|Colbert]] in 1664 of the [[French West India Company]].

The [[Compagnie du Sénégal|Company of Senegal]] was in turn founded by Colbert in 1673. It became the major tool of French colonialism in Senegal, but saddled with debt, it was dissolved 1681 and replaced by another that lasted until 1694, the date of creation of the Royal Company of Senegal, whose director, [[Andre Brue]], would be captured by [[Lat Sukaabe Fall]] the [[Damel]] of [[Cayor]] and released against ransom in 1701. A third Company of Senegal was founded in 1709 and lasted until 1718. On the British side, the monopoly of trade with Africa was granted to the [[Royal African Company]] in 1698.

[[File:DoléancesSénégal2.jpg|thumb|The List of Complaints of [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|Saint-Louis du Sénégal]] (1789)]]
[[File:Gorée1677.jpg|thumb|left|« Plan de l'isle de [[Gorée]] avec ses deux forts et le combat que nous avons rendu le premier du mois de novembre 1677 »]]

Grand Master of the naval war of [[Louis XIV]], Admiral [[Jean II d'Estrées]] seized [[Gorée]] on 1 November 1677. The island was taken by the English on 4 February 1693 before being again occupied by the French four months later. In 1698 the Director of the Company of Senegal, [[Andre Brue]], restored the fortifications. But Gorée was again [[Capture of Gorée|captured by the British]] in 1758 during the [[Seven Years' War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=McLynn |first=Frank |year=2004 |title=1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World |location=London |publisher=Jonathan Cape |pages=99–100 |isbn=978-0-224-06245-9 }}</ref> However, under the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|1763 Treaty of Paris]] ending the war, although Senegal was given to the British, the island of Gorée was returned to France.<ref name="Paris-10">"His Britannick Majesty shall restore to France the island of Goree in the condition it was in when conquered: and his Most Christian Majesty cedes, in full right, and guaranties to the King of Great Britain the river Senegal, with the forts and factories of St. Lewis, Podor, and Galam, and with all the rights and dependencies of the said river Senegal." – Article X of the [[File:Wikisource-logo.svg|12px|link=|alt=]] [[wikisource:Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris (1763)]] at [[Wikisource]].</ref>

The excellent location of St. Louis caught the attention of the English, who occupied it three times, first for a few months in 1693, second during the [[Seven Years' War]] from 1758 until it was retaken for the French by [[Armand Louis de Gontaut]] in 1779, and lastly from 1809 to 1816 during the Napoleonic wars.

After the 1763 Treaty of Paris, the British united their colony of [[The Gambia]] with Senegal into [[Senegambia]]. The British retook Gorée during the [[Anglo-French War (1778–1783)|Anglo-French War]]; however, British possession of Gorée was brief.

In 1783 the [[Peace of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Versailles]] returned Senegal to France,<ref>Article IX of the 1783 Treaty of Versailles provided, "The King od Great Britain cedes, in full right, and guaranties to his Most Christian Majesty, the river Senegal and its dependencies, with the forts of St. Louis, Podor, Galam, Arguin, and Portendic; and his Britannik Majesty restores to France the island of Goree, which shall be delivered up in the condition it was in when the conquest of it was made." {{Cite book|last=Jenkinson |first=Charles |year=1785 |title=A Collection of All the Treaties of Peace, Alliance, and Commerce, Between Great-Britain and Other Powers: From the Treaty Signed at Munster in 1648, to the Treaties Signed at Paris in 1783 |volume=3 |location=London |publisher=J. Debrett |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=dL8sAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA359 359] |oclc=3490533 }}</ref> and Senegambia was no more.

Nine companies, in succession, received the African monopoly of [[acacia|gum acacia]] from the French Crown. Seven of them went bankrupt. Among them were the ''[[Compagnie d’Afrique]]'' and the ''[[Compagnie du Sénégal]]''. The last was the ''Compagnie de la Gomme'' which failed in 1793.<ref>{{Cite book|last=van Dalen |first=Dorrit |year=2019 |title=Gum Arabic. The Golden Tears of the Acacia Tree |location=Leiden, The Netherlands |publisher=Leiden University Press |page=74 |isbn=978-90-8728-336-0 |url=https://www.academia.edu/41401589 }}</ref>

Appointed governor in 1785, [[Stanislaus Boufflers|Knight Boufflers]] focuses for two years to enhance the colony, while engaged in the smuggling of gum arabic and gold with [[signare]]s.

In 1789 the people of [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|St. Louis]] wrote a [[Cahiers de doléances|List of Grievances]]. The same year the French were driven out of Fort St. Joseph in Galam (Gajaaga) and the [[Kingdom of Galam]].

===A trading economy===
The Europeans were sometimes disappointed because they hoped to find more gold in West Africa, but when the development of [[plantation]]s in the Americas, mainly in the Caribbean, in Brazil and in the south of the United States raised a great need for cheap labor, the area received more attention. The [[Papacy]], who had sometimes opposed [[slavery]], did not condemn it explicitly to the end of the 17th century; in fact the [[Roman Catholic Church|Church]] itself has an interest in the colonial system. Traffic of "ebony" was an issue for warriors who traditionally reduced the vanquished to slavery. Some people specialized in the slave trade, for example the [[Dyula people|Dyula]] in West Africa. States and kingdoms competed, along with private traders who became much richer in the [[triangular trade]] (although some shipments resulted in real financial disaster). Politico-military instability in the region was compounded by the slave trade.

[[File:SignaresBal.jpg|thumb|A ball [[signare]]s in [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|St. Louis]] (burning 1890)]]

The [[Code Noir|Black Code]], enacted in 1685, regulated the trafficking of slaves in the American colonies.

In Senegal, trading posts were established in [[Gorée]], [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|St. Louis]], [[Rufisque]], [[Saly|Portudal]] and [[Joal]] and the upper valley of the [[Senegal River]], including Fort St. Joseph, in the [[Kingdom of Galam]], was in the 18th century a French engine of trafficking in [[Senegambia]].

In parallel, a mestizo society develops in St. Louis and Gorée.

[[Slavery]] was abolished by the [[National Convention]] in 1794, then reinstated by [[Napoleon|Bonaparte]] in 1802. The [[British Empire]] abolished slavery in 1833; in France it was finally abolished in the [[French Second Republic|Second Republic]] in 1848, under the leadership of [[Victor Schœlcher]].

===The progressive weakening of the colony===
In 1815, the [[Congress of Vienna]] condemned [[History of slavery|slavery]]. But this would not change much economically for the Africans.

After the departure of [[Julien Schmaltz|Governor Schmaltz]] (he had taken office at the end of the ''wreck of the Medusa''), [[Jacques-François Roger|Roger Baron]] particularly encouraged the development of the [[peanut]], "the earth pistachio", whose [[monoculture]] would be long because of the severe economic backwardness of Senegal. Despite the ferocity of the Baron, the company was a failure.

The colonization of [[Casamance]] also continued. The island of [[Carabane]], acquired by France in 1836, was profoundly transformed between 1849 and 1857 by the resident [[Emmanuel Bertrand Bocandé]], a [[Nantes]] businessman.

=={{anchor|French period}}Modern colonialism==
{{Main|French conquest of Senegal}}
[[File:Gorée-MaisonEsclaves1.jpg|thumb|Monument near the [[Maison des Esclaves]] on [[Gorée]] Island]]
[[File:St.LouisSenegal.jpg|thumb|[[Saint-Louis, Senegal|Saint-Louis]] in 1780]]
[[File:Le prince de Joinville sur l'île de Gorée en 1842.jpg|thumb|The [[François d'Orléans, Prince of Joinville|Prince of Joinville]] arriving at [[Gorée]] in 1842]]

Various European powers&nbsp;– Portugal, the Netherlands, and England&nbsp;– competed for trade in the area from the 15th century onward, until in 1677, France ended up in possession of what had become a minor slave trade departure point—the infamous island of [[Gorée]] next to modern [[Dakar]].<ref name="h-net.org">[http://www.h-net.org/~africa/threads/goree.html "Goree and the Atlantic Slave Trade", Philip Curtin, History Net] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160402084801/https://www.h-net.org/~africa/threads/goree.html |date=2 April 2016 }}, accessed 9 July 2008.</ref><ref>''Les Guides Bleus: Afrique de l'Ouest''(1958 ed.), p. 123.</ref> In 1758 the French settlement was [[Capture of Senegal|captured by a British expedition]] as part of the [[Great Britain in the Seven Years' War|Seven Years' War]], but was later returned to France. It was only in the 1850s that the French, under the governor, [[Louis Faidherbe]], began to expand their foothold onto the Senegalese mainland, at the expense of the native kingdoms.

The [[Four Communes]] of [[Saint-Louis, Senegal|Saint-Louis]], [[Dakar]], [[Gorée]], and [[Rufisque]] were the oldest colonial towns in [[French West Africa|French controlled west Africa]]. In 1848, the [[French Second Republic]] extended the rights of full French citizenship to their inhabitants.  While those who were born in these towns could technically enjoy all the rights of native French citizens, substantial legal and social barriers prevented the full exercise of these rights, especially by those seen by authorities as full blooded Africans.

Most of the African population of these towns were termed ''originaires'': those Africans born into the commune, but who retained recourse to African and/or Islamic law (the so-called "personal status").  Those few Africans from the four communes who were able to pursue higher education and were willing to renounce their legal protections could "rise" to be termed [[Évolué]] ("Evolved") and were nominally granted full French citizenship, including the vote.  Despite this legal framework, Évolués still faced substantial discrimination in Africa and the [[Metropole]] alike.

On 27 April 1848, following the February revolution in France, a law was passed in Paris enabling the Four Communes to elect a Deputy to the French Parliament for the first time. On 2 April 1852 the parliamentary seat for Senegal was abolished by [[Napoleon III]]. Following the downfall of the [[French Second Empire]], the Four Communes was again allowed a parliamentary seat which was granted by law on 1 February 1871. On 30 December 1875 this seat was again abolished, but only for a few years as it was reinstated on 8 April 1879, and remained the single parliamentary representation from sub-Saharan Africa anywhere in a European legislature until the fall of the third republic in 1940.

It was only in 1916 that ''originaires'' were granted full voting rights while maintaining legal protections.  [[Blaise Diagne]], who was the prime advocate behind the change, was in 1914 the first African deputy elected to the [[French National Assembly]].  From that time until independence in 1960, the deputies of the Four Communes were always African, and were at the forefront of the [[decolonisation]] struggle.

===List of deputies elected to the French Parliament===

'''The [[French Second Republic]]''':
*[[Barthélémy Durand Valantin]] 1848–1850 (Mixed race)
*Vacant 1850–1852
*Abolished 1852–1871
[[File:Blaise Diagne-Dakar-1918.jpg|thumb|Arrival of [[Blaise Diagne]], Deputy for Senegal, High Commissioner of the Government for the recruitment of black troops in [[Dakar]] in March 1918]]

'''The [[French Third Republic]]''':
*[[Jean-Baptiste Lafon de Fongauffier]] 1871–1876 (Mixed race)
*Abolished 1876–1879
*[[Alfred Gasconi]] 1879–1889 (Mixed race)
*[[Aristide Vallon]] 1889–1893
*[[Jules Couchard]] 1893–1898
*[[Hector D'Agoult]] 1898–1902
*[[François Carpot]] 1902–1914 (Mixed race)
*[[Blaise Diagne]] 1914–1934 (African)
*[[Galandou Diouf]] 1934–1940 (African)

[[File:Flag of Senegal (1958–1959).svg|thumb|Flag of French Senegal (1958–1959)]]

'''1945–1959''':
*[[Amadou Lamine-Guèye|Amadou Lamine Guèye]] 1945–1951<ref>[http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=4314 "Amadou Lamine-Gueye"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923091150/http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=4314 |date=23 September 2011 }}, Assemblée nationale.</ref> (African)
*[[Léopold Sedar Senghor]] 1945–1959<ref>[http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=6385 "Léopold Sédar Senghor"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119171523/http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=6385 |date=19 January 2012 }}, Assemblée nationale.</ref> (African)
*[[Abbas Guèye]] 1951–1955<ref>[http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=3642 "Abbas Gueye"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110920230451/http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=3642 |date=20 September 2011 }}, Assemblée nationale.</ref> (African)
*[[Mamadou Dia]] 1956–1959<ref>[http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=2495 "Mamadou Dia"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013055003/http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/sycomore/fiche.asp?num_dept=2495 |date=13 October 2012 }}, Assemblée nationale.</ref> (African)

Following the 1945 elections to the Constituent Assembly in France, which were held with a very limited franchise, the French authorities gradually extended the franchise until—in November 1955—the principle of [[universal suffrage]] was passed into law and implemented the following year.  The first electoral contests held under universal suffrage were the municipal elections of November 1956. The first national contest was the 31 March 1957 election of the Territorial Assembly.<ref>*Chafer, Tony. ''The End of Empire in French West Africa: France's Successful Decolonization'', Berg (2002), p. 145. {{ISBN|1-85973-557-6}}</ref>

==Independence==
{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2016}}
[[File:Mali Federation in its region.svg|thumb|250px|The short-lived [[Fédération du Mali]]]]

In January 1959, Senegal and the [[French Sudan]] merged to form the [[Mali Federation]], which became fully independent on 20 June 1960. The transfer of power agreement with France was signed on 4 April 1960. Due to internal political difficulties, the Federation broke up on 20 August 1960. Senegal and Soudan (renamed the Republic of [[Mali]]) proclaimed independence. [[Léopold Senghor]], internationally known poet, politician, and statesman, was elected Senegal's first president in August 1960.

The 1960s and early 1970s saw the continued and persistent violating of Senegal's borders by the Portuguese military from [[Portuguese Guinea]]. In response, Senegal petitioned the [[United Nations Security Council]] [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 178|in 1963]], [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 204|1965]], [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 204|1969]] (in response to shelling by Portuguese artillery), [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 294|1971]] and finally in [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 321|1972]].

After the breakup of the Mali Federation, President Senghor and Prime Minister [[Mamadou Dia]] governed together under a parliamentary system. In December 1962, their political rivalry led to an [[1962 Senegalese coup d'état attempt|attempted coup]] by Prime Minister Dia. The coup was put down without bloodshed and Dia was arrested and imprisoned. Senegal adopted a new constitution that consolidated the President's power.

Senghor was considerably more tolerant of opposition than most African leaders became in the 1960s.  Nonetheless, political activity was somewhat restricted for a time.  Senghor's party, the Senegalese Progressive Union (now the [[Socialist Party of Senegal]]), was the only legally permitted party from 1965 until 1975.  In the latter year, Senghor allowed the formation of two opposition parties that began operation in 1976—a Marxist party (the [[African Independence Party – Renewal|African Independence Party]]) and a liberal party (the [[Senegalese Democratic Party]]).

In 1980, President Senghor retired from politics, and handed power over to his handpicked successor, Prime Minister [[Abdou Diouf]], in 1981.

==1980–present==
Senegal joined with [[The Gambia]] to form the nominal confederation of [[Sénégambia Confederation|Senegambia]] on 1 February 1982. However, the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out and the union was dissolved in 1989. Despite peace talks, a southern separatist group in the [[Casamance]] region has clashed sporadically with government forces since 1982. Senegal has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.un.int/senegal/senegal/senegal-and-peacekeeping-operations|title=Senegal and the Peacekeeping Operations {{!}} Senegal|website=www.un.int|language=en|access-date=24 August 2017}}</ref>

Abdou Diouf was president between 1981 and 2000.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abdou-Diouf "Abdou Diouf"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208064716/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abdou-Diouf |date=8 February 2018 }}, ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.</ref> Diouf served four terms as president. In the presidential election of 2000, he was defeated in a free and fair election by opposition leader [[Abdoulaye Wade]].<ref>Cornado, Estelle, [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-16905528 "Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade's rise and rule"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180716233204/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-16905528 |date=16 July 2018 }}, BBC News, 26 March 2012.</ref> Senegal experienced its second [[peaceful transition of power]] and its first from one political party to another.

On 30 December 2004, President Abdoulaye Wade announced that he would sign a peace treaty with two separatist factions of the [[Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance]] (MFDC) in the [[Casamance]] region.<ref>Harsch, Ernest, [http://www.un.org/en/africarenewal/vol19no1/191senegal.htm "Peace pact raises hope in Senegal"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131045555/http://www.un.org/en/africarenewal/vol19no1/191senegal.htm |date=31 January 2018 }}, ''Africa Renewal'', Vol. 19 #1 (April 2005), p. 14.</ref> This will end West Africa's longest-running civil conflict. As of late 2006, it seemed the peace treaty was holding, as both factions and the Senegalese military appeared to honor the treaty. With recognized prospects for peace, [[refugees]] began returning home from neighboring [[Guinea-Bissau]]. However, at the beginning of 2007, refugees began fleeing again as the sight of Senegalese troops rekindled fears of a new outbreak of violence between the separatists and the government.<ref>[https://peaceaccords.nd.edu/provision/refugees-general-peace-agreement-between-government-republic-senegal-and-mfdc "Refugees: General Peace Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Senegal and MFDC"]{{Dead link|date=December 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, Peace Accords Matrix, University of Notre Dame.</ref>

Abdoulaye Wade conceded defeat to [[Macky Sall]] in the [[2012 Senegalese presidential election|election of 2012]].<ref>Nossiter, Adam, [https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/26/world/africa/president-concedes-race-in-senegal.html "A Turbulence-Free Election in Senegal"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130193700/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/26/world/africa/president-concedes-race-in-senegal.html |date=30 January 2018 }}, ''[[The New York Times]]'', 25 March 2012.</ref> In February 2019, president Macky Sall was [[2019 Senegalese presidential election|re-elected]] and he won a second term. The length of presidential term was reduced from seven years to five.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47400711|title = Senegal election: President Macky Sall wins second term|work = BBC News|date = 28 February 2019}}</ref>

In March 2024, Opposition candidate [[Bassirou Diomaye Faye]] won the Senegal’s presidential [[2024 Senegalese presidential election|election]] over the candidate of the ruling coalition, becoming the youngest president in Senegal’s history.<ref>{{cite news |title=Senegal opposition candidate Faye won 54 percent in presidential vote |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/27/senegal-oppositions-faye-won-over-54-of-vote-full-provisional-results |work=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> In December 2024, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye announced that France should shut down its military bases in Senegal.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lawal |first1=Shola |title=Is Francafrique ending? Why Senegal is cutting military ties with France |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/16/is-francafrique-ending-why-senegal-is-cutting-military-ties-with-france |work=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> The status of the end of the presence of French forces in Senegal is planned for September 2025.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20250121-s%C3%A9n%C3%A9gal-pr%C3%A9cisions-sur-la-fermeture-de-la-base-militaire-permanente-fran%C3%A7aise|title=Au Sénégal, il n'y aura plus de base militaire française permanente en septembre 2025|work=Radio France International|date=21 January 2025|access-date=21 January 2025|language=fr}}</ref>

On July 1, 2025, France handed over the Rufisque joint station to Senegal. This station, active since 1960, was responsible for communications on the southern Atlantic coast. It also served as a listening station in the fight against maritime trafficking. The handover was carried out without ceremony, limited to the signing of a report. The handover of the last remaining military infrastructure in Senegal to the Senegalese authorities is planned. On July 18, 2025, the two military sites will be returned to the Senegalese government: the airport base and Camp Geille, a 5-hectare site located in Ouakam. Four villas located in Plateau, near the port, will also be transferred to the Senegalese authorities.<ref>[https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20250701-s%C3%A9n%C3%A9gal-la-france-r%C3%A9troc%C3%A8de-la-base-de-rufisque-la-troisi%C3%A8me-remise-aux-autorit%C3%A9s-du-pays Sénégal: la France rétrocède la base de Rufisque, la quatrième remise aux autorités du pays (in French)]</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Senegal
| 3 = History
| 4 = Monarchy
}}
*Dakar [[Dakar#History|history]] and [[Timeline of Dakar|timeline]]
*[[Four Communes]]
*French {{interlanguage link|Colony of Senegal|fr|Colonie du Sénégal}}, 1817–1946
*[[History of Africa]]
*[[History of West Africa]]
*[[Politics of Senegal]]
*[[President of Senegal]]
*[[Prime Minister of Senegal]]
*Saint-Louis [[Saint-Louis, Senegal#History|history]] and [[Timeline of Saint-Louis, Senegal|timeline]]
*{{interlanguage link|Timeline of Senegal|fr|Chronologie du Sénégal}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
===English Language===
*Auchnie, Ailsa. ''"The commandement indigène" in Senegal. 1919–1947'', London: SOAS, 1983, 405 pages (Thèse)
* {{Cite EB1911|wstitle= Senegal (colony) | volume= 24 |last= Cana |first= Frank Richardson |author-link= | pages = 640&ndash;644 |short= 1}}
*Chafer, Tony. ''The End of Empire in French West Africa: France's Successful Decolonization''. Berg (2002). {{ISBN|1-85973-557-6}}
* Gellar, Sheldon. ''Senegal: an African nation between Islam and the West'' (Boulder: Westview Press, 1982).
*Idowu, H. Oludare. ''The Conseil General in Senegal, 1879–1920'', Ibadan: University of Ibadan, 1970 (Thèse)
*Leland, Conley Barrows. ''Général Faidherbe, the Maurel and Prom Company, and French Expansion in Senegal'', University of California, Los Angeles, 1974, XXI-t.1, pp.&nbsp;1–519; t.2, pages&nbsp;520–976, (thèse)
* Nelson, Harold D., et al. ''Area Handbook for Senegal'' (2nd ed. Washington: American University, 1974) [http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED109022.pdf full text online], 411pp; 
*Robinson Jr, David Wallace  ''Faidherbe, Senegal and Islam'', New York, Columbia University, 1965, 104 pages (thèse)
* {{cite book |title=Statesman's Year-Book |year=1921 |location=London |publisher= Macmillan and Co.|chapter= France: Africa: French West Africa and the Sahara: Colony of Senegal |chapter-url= https://archive.org/stream/statesmansyearbo1921londuoft#page/897/mode/1up |via=[[Internet Archive]] |pages= 897+ |title-link=Statesman's Year-Book }}
* Wikle, Thomas A., and Dale R. Lightfoot. "Landscapes of the Slave Trade in Senegal and The Gambia", ''Focus on Geography'' (2014) 57#1 pp.&nbsp;14–24.

===French language===
====Primary sources====
*[[Michel Adanson]], ''Histoire naturelle du Sénégal. Coquillages. Avec la relation abrégée d'un voyage fait en ce pays pendant les années 1749, 50, 51, 52 et 53'', Paris, 1757, réédité partiellement sous le titre ''Voyage au Sénégal'', présenté et annoté par Denis Reynaud et Jean Schmidt, Publications de l'Université de Saint-Étienne, 1996.
*[[Stanislas de Boufflers|Stanislas, chevalier de Boufflers]], ''Lettres d'Afrique à Madame de Sabran'', préface, notes et dossier de François Bessire, s. l., Babel, 1998, 453 pages (coll. Les Épistolaires)
*Marie Brantôme, ''Le Galant exil du marquis de Boufflers'', 1786
*[[Jean Baptiste Léonard Durand]], ''Voyage au Sénégal 1785–1786'', Paris: Agasse, 1802.
*Georges Hardy, ''La mise en valeur du Sénégal de 1817 à 1854'', Paris: Larose, 1921, XXXIV + 376 pages (Thèse de Lettres)
*André Charles, marquis de La Jaille, ''Voyage au Sénégal pendant les années 1784 et 1785, avec des notes jusqu’à l'an X par P. Labarthe'', Paris, Denter,1802.
*[[Saugnier]], ''Relation des voyages de Saugnier à la côte d'Afrique, au Maroc, au Sénégal, à Gorée, à Galam'', publiée par Laborde, Paris: Lamy, 1799.
*René Claude Geoffroy de Villeneuve, ''L’Afrique ou Histoire, mœurs, usages et coutumes des Africains : le Sénégal, orné de 44 planches exécutées la plupart d'après des dessins originaux inédits faits sur les lieux'', Paris: Nepveu,1814.

====Secondary sources====
*[[Henry Gravrand|Gravrand, Henry]], "La Civilisation Sereer – ''Pangool''", vol. 2, Les Nouvelles Editions Africaines du  [[Senegal]], 1990, pp, 9, 20 & 77, 91, {{ISBN|2-7236-1055-1}}
*Gravrand, Henry, "La civilisation Sereer, Vol. 1, Cosaan: les origines", Nouvelles Editions africaines, 1983, {{ISBN|2-7236-0877-8}}
*[[University of Calgary]], Dept. of Archaeology, Society of Africanist Archaeologists in America, Society of Africanist Archaeologists, ''Newsletter of African archaeology'', Issues 47–50, Dept. of Archaeology, University of Calgary, 1997, pp.&nbsp;27, 58
*Becker, Charles, "Vestiges historiques, trémoins matériels du passé clans les pays [[Serer people|sereer]]", Dakar (1993), CNRS&nbsp;– ORS TO M
*Foltz, William J., "From French West Africa to the [[Mali Federation]]", Volume 12 of Yale studies in political science, p.&nbsp;136, [[Yale University Press]], 1965
*[[Cheikh Anta Diop|Diop, Cheikh Anta]], Modum, Egbuna P., "Towards the African renaissance: essays in African culture & development", 1946–1960, p.&nbsp;28, Karnak House (1996). {{ISBN|0-907015-85-9}}
*Coifman, Victoria Bomba, "History of the Wolof state of Jolof until 1860 including comparative data from the Wolof state of Walo", p.&nbsp;276, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1969
*Diouf, Niokhobaye. "Chronique du royaume du Sine" par suivie de Notes sur les traditions orales et les sources écrites concernant le royaume du Sine par Charles Becker et Victor Martin. Bulletin de [[Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire|l'Ifan]], Tome 34, Série B, n° 4, 1972, p.&nbsp;706
*[[Alioune Sarr|Sarr, Alioune]], "Histoire du [[Kingdom of Sine|Sine]]–[[Kingdom of Saloum|Saloum]]", Introduction, bibliographie et Notes par Charles Becker, BIFAN, Tome 46, Serie B, n° 3–4, 1986–1987
*Rodolphe Alexandre, ''La Révolte des tirailleurs sénégalais à Cayenne, 24–25 février 1946'', 1995, 160 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7384-3330-8}}
*Jean-Luc Angrand, ''Céleste ou le temps des signares'', Éditions Anne Pépin, 2006
*Boubacar Barry, ''La Sénégambie du XVe au XIXe siècle. Traite négrière, Islam et conquête coloniale'', Paris, L'Harmattan, 1991 (rééd.), 544 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-85802-670-X}}
*Boubacar Barry, ''Le Royaume du Waalo : le Sénégal avant la Conquête'', Karthala, 2000 (rééd.), 420 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-141-7}}
*[[Abdoulaye Bathily]], ''Les Portes de l'or : le royaume de Galam (Sénégal) de l'ère musulmane au temps des négriers (VIIIe-XVIIIe siècles)'', Paris: L'Harmattan, 1989.
*Claire Bernard, ''Les Aménagements du bassin fleuve Sénégal pendant la colonisation française (1850–1960)'', ANRT, 1996, {{ISBN|2-284-00077-0}}
*Germaine Françoise Bocandé, ''L’implantation militaire française dans la région du Cap-Vert : causes, problèmes et conséquences des origines à 1900'', Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1980, 112 pages (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
*Jean Boulègue, ''Le Grand Jolof : XIIIe-XVIe siècles, les Anciens royaumes Wolof, t. 1'', Karthala, 1987, 207 pages
*Paul Bouteiller, ''Le Chevalier de Boufflers et le Sénégal de son temps (1785–1788), Lettres du Monde'', Paris, 1995.
*Bruno A. Chavane, ''Villages de l'ancien Tekrour : recherches archéologiques dans la moyenne vallée du fleuve Sénégal'', Karthala-CRA, 2000 (rééd.)
*[[Sékéné Mody Cissoko]], ''Le Khasso face à l'empire Toucouleur et à la France dans le Haut- Sénégal 1854–1890'', Paris: L'[[Harmattan]], 1988, 351 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7384-0133-3}}
*[[Catherine Clément]], ''Afrique esclave'', Agnès Vienot, 1999, 200 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-911606-36-1}}
*Cyr Descamps, ''Contribution à la préhistoire de l'Ouest-sénégalais'', Paris: Université de Paris, 1972, 345 pages Thèse de 3<sup>e</sup> cycle publiée en 1979, Dakar, Travaux et Documents Faculté des Lettres, 286 pages
*Falilou Diallo, ''Histoire du Sénégal : de la conférence de Brazzaville à la fondation du bloc démocratique sénégalais : 1944–1948'', Paris: Université de Paris I, 1983, 318 pages (Thèse de 3rd cycle)
*Papa Momar Diop, ''Les administrateurs coloniaux au Sénégal. 1900–1914'', Dakar: Université de Dakar, 1985, 107 pages (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
*[[Mamadou Diouf (historian)|Mamadou Diouf]], ''Le Kajoor au XIX<sup>e</sup>'', Karthala, 1989
*Mamadou Diouf, ''Le Sénégal sous Abdou Diouf'', Karthala, 1990
*Mamadou Diouf, ''Une histoire du Sénégal : le modèle islamo-wolof et ses périphéries'', Paris: Maisonneuve & Larose, 2001, 250 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7068-1503-5}}
*Babacar Fall, ''Le Travail forcé en Afrique Occidentale Française (1900–1946)'', Karthala, 2000, 336 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-372-X}}
*Denys Ferrando-Durfort, ''Lat Dior le résistant'', Paris : Chiron, 1989.&nbsp;– 45 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7027-0403-4}}
*Jean Girard, ''L'Or du Bambouk : du royaume de Gabou à la Casamance une dynamique de civilisation ouest-africaine'', Genève: Georg, 1992, 347 pages
*Bernard Grosbellet, ''Le'' Moniteur du Sénégal et dépendances '' comme sources de l'histoire du Sénégal pendant le premier gouvernement de Faidherbe (1856–1861)'', Dakar: [[Université de Dakar]], 1967, 113 pages (Diplôme d'Etudes Supérieures)
*Gerti Hesseling, ''Histoire politique du Sénégal: institutions, droit et société'' (translation Catherine Miginiac), Karthala, 2000, 437 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-118-2}}
*Abdoulaye Ly, ''La Compagnie du Sénégal'', Karthala, 2000, 448 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-406-8}}
*Mahamadou Maiga, ''Le Bassin du fleuve Sénégal&nbsp;– De la traite négrière au développement'', Paris, L’Harmattan, 1995, 330 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7384-3093-7}}
*Laurence Marfaing, ''Évolution du commerce au Sénégal : 1820–1930'', Paris, L’Harmattan,  1991, 320 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7384-1195-9}}
*Saliou Mbaye, ''Le Conseil privé du Sénégal de 1819 à 1854'', Paris, [[Université de Paris]], 1974, 431 pages (Thèse de l'École des Chartes)
*[[Djibril Tamsir Niane]], ''Soundjata ou l'épopée Mandingue'', [[Présence africaine]], 2000 (rééd.) 160 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-7087-0078-2}}
*Jean-Pierre Phan, ''Le Front Populaire au Sénégal (1936–1938)'', Paris, Université de Paris I, 1974, 176 pages (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
*Christian Roche, ''Histoire de la Casamance : Conquête et résistance 1850–1920'', Karthala, 2000, 408 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-125-5}}
*Christian Roche, ''Le Sénégal à la conquête de son indépendance, 1939–1960. Chronique de la vie politique et syndicale, de l'Empire français à l'Indépendance'', Paris: Karthala, 2001, 286 pages
*Yves-Jean Saint-Martin,  ''Une source de l'histoire coloniale du Sénégal. Les rapports de situation politique (1874–1891)'', Dakar: Université de Dakar, 1964, 147 pages (Diplôme d'Etudes Supérieures)
*Yves-Jean Saint-Martin, ''La formation territoriale de la colonie du Sénégal sous le Second Empire 1850–1871'', Nantes: Université de Nantes, 1980, 2 vol. 1096 pages (Thèse d'État)
*Yves-Jean Saint-Martin, ''Le Sénégal sous le Second Empire'', Karthala, 2000, 680 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-201-4}}
*H. Y. Sanchez-Calzadilla, ''A l'origine de l'expansion française, la commission des comptoirs du Sénégal'', Paris: Université de Paris I, 1973 (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
*Alain Sinou, ''Comptoirs et villes coloniales du Sénégal: Saint-Louis, Gorée, Dakar'', Karthala, 1999, 344 pages&nbsp;{{ISBN|2-86537-393-2}}
*Charles Uyisenga, ''La participation de la colonie du Sénégal à l'effort de guerre 1914–1918'', Dakar: Université de Dakar, 1978, 216 pages (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
*Nicole Vaget Grangeat, ''Le Chevalier de Boufflers et son temps, étude d'un échec'', Paris, Nizet, 1976
*Baïla Wane, ''Le Conseil colonial du Sénégal, 1920–1946'', Paris: [[Université de Paris VII]], 1978, 20 pages (Diplôme d'Études Approfondies).

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080221214748/http://membres.lycos.fr/anthropa/A.Robert.html "VIIe Colloque euroafricain"] Aline Robert&nbsp;– Les sources écrites européennes du XVe au XIXe s : un apport complémentaire pour la connaissance du passé africain
* [http://tdm.vo.qc.ca/uniforme/un010.htm Uniformes des tirailleurs sénégalais]
* [https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2862.htm Background Note: Senegal]

{{Senegal topics}}
{{Senegal year nav}}
{{History of Africa}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:History Of Senegal}}
[[Category:History of Senegal| ]]
[[Category:French West Africa|Senegal (colonial)]]