Bundu (also Bondu, Bondou and Boundou) was a state in one of the

West African West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, ...

countries which later became a French

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

dependent on the colony of

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

. It lay between the

Falémé River The Falémé River is a river in West Africa. The Falémé arises in northern Guinea and flows in a north-northeast direction to Mali, forming a short portion of the border between Guinea and Senegal. It turns north and then forms a portion of th ...

and the upper course of the

Gambia River The Gambia River (formerly known as the River Gambra) is a major river in West Africa, running from the Fouta Djallon plateau in north Guinea westward through Senegal and The Gambia to the Atlantic Ocean at the city of Banjul. It is navigabl ...

, that is between 13 and 15 N., and 12 and 13 W.

Description

The country is an elevated plateau, with hills in the southern and central parts. These are generally unproductive, and covered with stunted wood; but the lower country is fertile, and finely clothed with the

baobab ''Adansonia'' is a genus made up of eight species of medium-to-large deciduous trees known as baobabs ( or ). They are placed in the Malvaceae family, subfamily Bombacoideae. They are native to Madagascar, mainland Africa, and Australia.Trop ...

, the

tamarind Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabaceae ...

and various valuable fruit-trees. Bondu is traversed by torrents, which flow rapidly during the rains but are empty in the dry season. The inhabitants were mostly

Fula Fula may refer to: *Fula people (or Fulani, Fulɓe) *Fula language (or Pulaar, Fulfulde, Fulani) **The Fula variety known as the Pulaar language **The Fula variety known as the Pular language **The Fula variety known as Maasina Fulfulde *Al-Fula ...

, though the Mandinka of the area controlled trade. Most people were Muslim and the legal structure followed

Islamic law Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the ...

, but it was not known as a strictly observant region. This cites A. Rançon, ''Le Bondou: étude de géographie et d'histoire soudaniennes de 1681 à nos jours'' (Bordeaux, 1894).

History

Bondu was controlled by Mande rulers until the second half of the 17th century when Muslim

s took over in what is regarded as the first of the

Fula jihads The Fula (or Fulani) jihads ( ar, جهاد الفولا) sometimes called the Fulani revolution were a series of jihads that occurred across West Africa during the 18th and 19th centuries, led largely by the Muslim Fula people. The jihads and ...

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, M ...

."The Islamic revolution in the western Sudan: The First Fulani Jihad."
(p. 10) ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 2013. ''(accessed 6 March 2013)'' Mungo Park, the first European traveller to visit the country, passed through Bondu in 1795, and had to submit to many exactions from the reigning monarch. The royal residence was then at Fatteconda; but when Major William Gray, a British officer who attempted to solve the

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesBulibani (Boolibany), a village with a population of 1500–1800, surrounded by a strong clay wall. In August 1845 the king of Bondu signed a treaty recognizing French sovereignty over his country. The treaty was disregarded by the natives, but in 1858 Bondu came definitively under French control.

Notable people

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (17011773), also known as Job Ben Solomon, was a prominent Fulani Muslim prince from West Africa who was kidnapped to the Americas during the Atlantic slave trade, having previously sold slaves himself. Born in Bundu, Sene ...

(1701—1773), slave trader who was enslaved by the Mandinka *

Richard Pierpoint Richard Pierpoint (Bundu – Canada ), also known as Black Dick, Captain Dick, Captain Pierpoint, Pawpine, and Parepoint was a British soldier of Senegalese descent. Brought to America as a slave, he was granted freedom to fight on the side of t ...

, freed slave, British Army soldier and farmer in

Fergus, Ontario Fergus is the largest community in Centre Wellington, a township within Wellington County in Ontario, Canada. It lies on the Grand River about 18 km NNW of Guelph. The population of this community at the time of the 2016 Census was 20,767 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

References

Sources

* *

Description

History

Notable people

References

Sources

Further reading