(Photo by Erica Kowa via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 2.0)
A recent Senegalese-led commission has yielded new insight into the 1944 Thiaroye massacre of local soldiers by French colonial authorities. Previous investigations of the event, often led by France, had placed the number of Senegalese men killed between 30 and 70. By contrast, the authors of the report submitted to Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye stated that the “most credible” toll is likely closer to ten times that amount — around 300 to 400 deaths.
Beyond the contrast in the death toll, new details also cast doubt on the official French story that the massacre was carried out in ‘self-defence’ from revolting soldiers within the Thiaroye military encampment. The report suggests that French authorities had murdered unarmed soldiers inside and outside of their camp and that the attacks were carried out as part of a plan to “convince people that the colonial order could not be undermined by the emancipatory effects of the Second World War.”
This investigation highlights the legacy of West African conscripts in the French colonial army during the Second World War. Far from a reopening of old wounds, these new details offer an important opportunity to address the lack of justice and recognition for this period in colonial history. What’s more, this commission is just one significant event amidst a broader, large-scale political shift in not just Senegal, but the wider region in opposition to former colonial ruler France.
The Tirailleur Legacy & The Whitewashing of World War II History
Both the First and Second World Wars have come to be called as such, not just because they were fought between multiple countries in Europe, but also because the British and French armies included colonial conscripts from many countries. Just as Britain obligated populations from its colonies (including India, Myanmar, and Kenya) to serve in the war effort, so too did France.
France’s armies had, for decades prior to World War II, drawn upon young men from its colonies. These men, either voluntarily or conscripted, hailed from all over the world, from Indochina to North Africa. In particular, hundreds of thousands of soldiers from West Africa were enlisted in the war effort, with tens of thousands of them serving in mainland Europe.
This West African group within the broader French troupes coloniales was known as the tirailleurs sénégalais, or ‘Senegalese riflemen.’ This term was used not just to describe soldiers that came from Senegal, but also what is now Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea and Niger. The tirailleurs fought in many decisive battles in both World Wars on behalf of France, specifically playing a key role in the liberation of Paris. Thousands were killed and many were captured and tortured by the Nazis.
The tirailleur‘s historical contribution has been largely ignored, not because it was insignificant, but because it was dangerous. Following the liberation of Paris, according to primary sources seen by the BBC, British and American commanders “insisted that all Black soldiers be taken out and replaced by white ones from other units.” This process, led by French General Charles de Gaulle, was known as blanchement, literally translated to ‘whitening.’ For fear of what images of Black men fighting alongside white men would inspire in a world still dominated by racial segregation, the tirailleurs were cast aside and their contributions left largely forgotten.
The Thiaroye Massacre
With promises of social mobility, payment for their services, and the eventual possibility of independence when they returned home, the tirailleurs were hopeful that, despite their sacrifices and the challenges they faced with racial discrimination, life would eventually get better when they returned. When they were sent home, however, conditions remained more or less the same. Despite changes in its rhetoric, French colonial policy maintained its status quo of forced labour, detention and punishment according to the whims of colonial officers, racial hierarchy, limited opportunity for advancement in the colonial system, and the generally forceful imposition of French frameworks at the expense of local autonomy and indigenous tradition.
This continued reality of colonial rule greeted the tirailleurs upon their return to Senegal. Many of the soldiers stationed at Thiaroye were released prisoners of war, having experienced the unique horrors of Nazi imprisonment. The resumption of poor treatment by French officers at the camp, then, was further compounded by their lack of proper compensation for their service. Soldiers were told their wages would only be half of what white French officers received for the same service. This final injustice was the catalyst that led to the tirailleurs’ protest and thus their brutal repression by the French administration.
As noted by the new report, French officers opened fire on what it concluded to be unarmed riflemen. Using mounted machine guns and armoured cars, French authorities killed between 300 and 400 soldiers, disposing of their bodies in unidentified mass graves that have still yet to be uncovered. In what was a “premeditated, meticulously planned and executed” action, the report argues that “the French authorities did everything they could to cover up” and that “nowhere was the slightest act of resistance mentioned” in official records. In spite of their bravery and sacrifice, the Thiaroye massacre saw the full brutality of the French colonial system exerted upon the tirailleurs.
The Long Fight for Justice
The story of the tirailleurs remains relevant to this day, not just because hundreds were murdered in 1944. Even after the massacre, Senegal did not receive its independence until 1960. Leopold Sedar Senghor, Senegal’s first president, was himself among the tirailleurs who served in Europe. No! I shall not let words of scornful praise secretly bury you, Senghor would later write, speaking of his experience. You are not empty-pocket poor men without honour.
As convincingly argued by the authors of the report, Thiaroye was a point where France’s control over its colonies was re-exerted — rather than pay the tirailleurs the same as white soldiers and risk the political implications of such an act, France opted to violently put down their legitimate concerns out of its own self-interest.
After Senegal and other former French colonies in West Africa finally received their independence, the fight for public recognition of France’s atrocities, reparations, and the continuation of soldiers’ pensions continued. Other Francophone nations in the region sought to achieve this by severing ties with France. Senghor’s administration, as well as those of his successors in Senegal, took the position of maintaining close relations with its former colonizer, hoping that doing so would allow it to lobby for justice.
Despite decades of protest, it was not until 2006 that the massacre was publicly acknowledged by France and even later still in 2010 when efforts to address the injustice of unpaid pensions were made. By then, the damage had been done; more than 80 years after the fact, most soldiers had died.
Reconciliation & A New Path for Senegalese Politics
Politically, Senegal finds itself at a new crossroads. The recent election of its new administration came after protests in 2023 against longtime president Macky Sall. In addition to rising discontent at poor economic conditions, backlash began to mount against Sall after his administration arbitrarily detained and disqualified popular candidate Ousmane Sonko from the 2024 election on the charges of “corrupting the youth”. With rumours that Sall would run for a third term against the country’s constitutional rules, protests erupted throughout the year, leaving over 65 people dead.
Sonko was eventually granted amnesty and elected prime minister alongside his close ally and president-elect Bassirou Diomaye Faye. Saddled with debt from Sall’s corrupt administration, Faye and Sonko have repeatedly stressed the contemporary moment as an opportunity for change. The West African nation has taken concrete steps to sever its long-standing ties to France. It has ordered the departure of French troops, renamed colonial-era landmarks, and continues to float the idea of creating a new national currency that is no longer tied to France.
In doing so, the West African nation has followed policies pursued by the neighbouring ‘Alliance of Sahel States,’ a newly emerging regional bloc that has similarly decried the ‘neocolonial’ influence of France, which includes Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. Senegal’s switch from hostility to support for this group, as well as its calls for co-operation, is clear evidence that Senegal is headed in a similar direction.
The re-investigation of Thiaroye, then, comes at a key moment. At a time when ties with France are being re-evaluated throughout the region, renewed calls for tirailleur justice are symbolic. What’s more, Faye has a personal connection to this case: his grandfather was a tirailleur during the First World War. Altogether, the messaging to France is clear: if you want continued engagement with the region, then it must be done in good faith. Previous wrongs must be urgently addressed, rather than downplayed as mere ‘foreign propaganda’.
Remembering The Tirailleurs
Over 80 years later, the tirailleur legacy remains as relevant as ever. Time will tell if further action is taken by France to resolve this historical instance of wrongdoing. Regardless, reconciliation and cooperation define the path ahead for Senegal and its neighbours. The shared tragedy of the tirailleur experience and hardship under colonial rule can serve as the foundation for future partnerships in the region that are built on the common goal of regaining domestic capabilities and achieving prosperity for populations who have been historically denied justice.
Edited by Chelsea Bean
