Second Franco-Dahomean War - End of The War

End of The War

On November 5, Dahomey sent a truce mission to the French, and the next day saw the French enter Cana. The peace mission failed, however, and on the 16th of November, the French army marched on Abomey. King Béhanzin, refusing to let the capital fall into enemy hands, burned and evacuated the city. He and the remnants of the Dahomey army fled north as the French entered the capital on November 17. The French tricolor was hoisted over the Singboji palace, which survived the fire and remains in modern Benin to this day.

The king of Dahomey fled to Atcheribé, thirty miles north of the capital. Attempts were initiated to rebuilt the army and its amazon corps until the French chose Béhanzin's brother, Goutchili, as the new king. King Béhanzin surrendered to the French on January 15, 1894 and was exiled to Martinique. The war had officially ended.

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