Carnot is a city located in the south west of the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

(CAR), in the

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

of Mambéré. It has a population of 54,551 (2012 census), making it the fourth largest city in CAR by population. The city takes its name as a tribute to the

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

French President The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is the supreme magistracy of the country, the pos ...

Sadi Carnot. The city is situated on the eastern bank of the Mambéré river, and is served by Carnot Airport. Yams, cassava, and cotton are cultivated, and cattle are reared in the area. The region lacks a functioning health service and is affected by an extremely high mortality rate and a high disease burden of

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

and

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

History

In 1894, François Joseph Clozel founded a French military post near the village of Tendira. The locality was given the name ''Carnot'' in homage to the French president assassinated in 1894: Sadi Carnot (1837-1894). In 1902, the town became home to the 5th company of the 1st RTS ( Senegalese Rifle Regiment), a corps of colonial infantry in the French army. On 4 November 1911, as part of the Franco-German Accord, an agreement that ended the

Agadir Crisis The Agadir Crisis, Agadir Incident, or Second Moroccan Crisis, was a brief crisis sparked by the deployment of a substantial force of French troops in the interior of Morocco in July 1911 and the deployment of the German gunboat to Agadir, ...

, Carnot was ceded to the German Cameroon (Kamerun). While claimed by Germany, the region became known as

Neukamerun Neukamerun was the name of Central African territories ceded by the Third French Republic to the German Empire in 1911. Upon taking office in 1907, Theodor Seitz, governor of Kamerun, advocated the acquisition of territories from the French C ...

. During the First World War, the

Kamerun campaign The Kamerun campaign took place in the German colony of Kamerun in the African theatre of the First World War when the British, French and Belgians invaded the German colony from August 1914 to March 1916. Most of the campaign took place in ...

(1914), saw the departure of the German occupiers. As a result of this, France then re-claimed the region. By decree on 12 December 1920, Carnot became the capital of a subdivision of the district of Haute-Sangha, then the capital of the district of Mambéré-Lobaye, in French Congo (Colonie du Moyen-Congo). The city was involved in the

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

trade. From the middle of the 1920s onward, cars and roads were introduced to the area. A ferry across the Mambéré was commissioned in 1926. The region was struck by an earthquake in 1934. The following year a Protestant mission was built in Carnot. French soldiers departed from the city in 1937. In 1938,

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

and

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...

peoples arrived from North Africa and settled in the area. The first mosque was built in Carnot in 1940, and a bridge over the river Mambéré was constructed in 1944. The city is the seat of the Roman Catholic parish of Notre-Dame de la Mambéré de Carnot founded in 1945; it depends on the diocese of Berbérati. The collapse of the mining industry in 2009, and resulting impoverishment of much of the population in Carnot, exacerbated the already poor health situation resulting in high levels of

malnutrition Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...

and mortality.

Civil war

On 1 February 2014 Seleka withdrew from Carnot leaving city under

Anti-balaka The Anti-balaka (''anti-machete'') is an alliance of militia groups based in the Central African Republic in the early 21st century said by ''the Guardian'' to be composed primarily of Christians, but also some Muslims. However, some church leade ...

control. Local Muslims were subject to threats and attacks. More than 18 people were killed until 8 February. In July 2017 it was reported to be under control of security forces. On 27 December 2020 rebels from

Coalition of Patriots for Change The Coalition of Patriots for Change (; CPC) is a coalition of major rebel groups in the Central African Republic created in 2020 to disrupt the 2020–21 Central African Republic general election. Background On 3 December 2020, the Constitu ...

took control of Carnot. They withdrew from the town on 30 December after looting public buildings and burning voting cards. In December 2020, Carnot became the capital Mambéré Prefecture.

Notable people

* Alexandre Banza

References

{{Sub-prefectures of the Central African Republic Sub-prefectures of the Central African Republic Populated places in Mambéré Populated places established in 1894