Regions West Africa

Survey Articles (Regional)

• West Africa

  By George N. Njung

  

  This article examines the deployment of West African soldiers for military service in West Africa, including the manner of mobilization and recruitment. By demonstrating the heavy reliance on West … READ MORE

  Regional

Regional Thematic Articles

• African Labour in Europe (Africa)

  By Richard Fogarty

  

  Between 1914 and 1918, between 150,000 and 200,000 Africans traveled to Europe to labor in support of the war effort. Most came from French colonies, but many also came from British colonies in … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Bereavement and Mourning (Africa)

  By Meshack Owino

  

  This article examines bereavement and mourning practices among African families during World War I by focusing on, first, the traditional modes of mourning, grieving, and remembering the dead; … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Colonial Military Participation in Europe (Africa)

  By Christian Koller

  

  This article analyzes the deployment of about half a million African soldiers in Europe, where most of them fought in the French army. It first outlines the numbers and origins of African soldiers as … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Colonial Warfare and Occupation (Africa)

  By Brian Digre

  

  In 1914, Allied leaders plunged Africans into a conflict that was not their own. In West Africa, British and French colonial troops quickly occupied Togo, while the conquest of Cameroon proved much … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Commemoration, Cult of the Fallen (Africa)

  By Suryakanthie Chetty and Ruth Ginio

  

  Commemoration in the form of ceremonies and monuments was for the most part alien to African cultures and was largely a part of the European colonial project. As such, its main aim was to glorify … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Food and Nutrition (Africa)

  By Anne Samson and Melvin E. Page

  

  The mobile nature of the war in Africa meant supplying the forces with food was a challenge. As the centre of conflict moved, African colonial home fronts became battle fronts, impacting the … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Influenza Pandemic (Africa)

  By Howard Phillips

  This article provides the first continent-wide overview of the catastrophic, worldwide “Spanish” influenza pandemic in Africa. It focuses on the virus’ arrival, the countermeasures that vainly … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Organization of War Economies (Africa)

  By Karin Pallaver

  

  This article provides a brief overview of the contribution of African economies to the war and of the ways in which colonial economies were re-organized to respond to the demands of the war period. … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Post-war Colonial Administration (Africa)

  By Caroline Authaler and Stefanie Michels

  

  This article argues that the shifts in the colonial administration after World War One should be analyzed from two intertwined perspectives: Firstly the new international system of the mandates and … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Post-war Economies (Africa)

  By Charlotte Walker-Said

  

  The economic development of African territories in the years following World War I was fostered by European and American capital, as well as by African societies’ innovations in agricultural … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Post-war Societies (Africa)

  By Walter Gam Nkwi

  

  This article focuses on the Africans who fought in the First World War and the role they played in bringing about social transformation in postwar African societies. It sheds light on the ex-soldiers … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Pre-war Military Planning (Africa)

  By Timothy J. Stapleton

  

  Africa did not feature prominently in pre-war military planning. Once the Allies secured the strategically important coastlines of the German colonies, they competed with each other in the seizure of … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Prisoners of War (Africa)

  By Daniel Steinbach

  

  During the First World War Africans served as combatants, porters, and labourers in Africa and Europe where many became prisoners of war. POWs in Africa were generally swiftly incorporated into their … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Science and Technology (Africa)

  By Melvin E. Page

  

  Although many scientific innovations and technologies came to the continent with the process of colonization, only during the First World War did Africans experience the full potential of new weapons … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• War Aims and War Aims Discussions (Africa)

  By Brian Digre

  

  The First World War led to a renewed imperialist scramble for territory in Africa. Allied victory and African campaigns allowed British, French, Belgian, Portuguese and South African leaders to … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• War and Colonial Finance (Africa)

  By Karin Pallaver

  

  This article provides a brief overview of the financial contribution of the African colonies to the First World War. It considers the problems faced by the colonial state in raising revenues during … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• War Losses (Africa)

  By Joe Harris Lunn

  

  Human resources in Africa were exploited during the First World War for imperial ends. Men were sent to Europe to augment the manpower of the combatants, and soldiers and labourers were mobilized to … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

Encyclopedic Entries

• Empire

  By Erez Manela

  

  World War I was not simply a conflict among European states but a global war of empires. The fighting took place not only in Europe, but also in Africa, Asia, and across the Middle East, and it … READ MORE

  Entry

• Schutztruppe (East Africa, Southwest Africa, Cameroon)

  By Thomas Morlang

  

  Between 1891 and 1894 colonial forces, named “''Schutztruppe''”, were established in the German colonies in East Africa, Cameroon, and Southwest Africa. They formed a third military branch … READ MORE

  Entry

• Tirailleurs Sénégalais

  By Richard Fogarty

  

  The ''tirailleurs sénégalais'' (Senegalese riflemen) figured prominently among the many indigenous peoples who served in the French army during the First World War. By 1918, France had recruited … READ MORE

  Entry

See also

• Colonial Policy, Colonial Conflicts and War before 1914

  By Jonas Kreienbaum

  

  While there were no major wars between European great powers in the decades preceding 1914, their militaries were constantly engaged, fighting in their expanding colonial empires in Africa, Asia, … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Commemoration, Cult of the Fallen

  By Stéphane Tison

  

  The First World War ushered in an unprecedented wave of commemorations. Mass death elicited a construction spree in memorial objects and sites across all countries and territories involved in the … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Extra-European Theatres of War

  By Michelle Moyd

  

  The extra-European theatres of World War I have received far less scholarly attention than the war in Europe. This state of affairs is hardly surprising given the sheer magnitude of the Western Front … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Imperialism

  By Boris Barth

  

  This article focuses on the extent to which imperialism contributed to the outbreak of the First World War. The first part describes the emergence of specific imperialist cultures and attitudes in … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Negotiating and Mediating Conduct of War

  By Matthew Stibbe

  

  Many issues surrounding the conduct of war in the years 1914-1918 were impervious to international negotiation or mediation, due either to a complete lack of consensus or to an absence of trust and … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Non-European Soldiers

  By Richard Fogarty and Andrew Tait Jarboe

  

  This article examines the use by Great Britain and France of colonial subjects from their empires to fight during the First World War. Other Great War soldiers hailed from locations outside of … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Post-war Societies

  By Richard Bessel

  

  The First World War caused unprecedented disruption to societies across the globe, from Western and (especially) Central and Eastern Europe to East Africa. While many survivors could celebrate an end … READ MORE

  Thematic