French Cameroons
| French Cameroons | |||||
| Cameroun | |||||
| Mandate of France | |||||
| |||||
| Anthem La Marseillaise • O Cameroon, Cradle of Our Forefathers (instrumental only) | |||||
| Capital | Yaoundé | ||||
| Languages | French (official) Ewondo, Fula, Basaa, Bulu, Bamum widely spoken | ||||
| Religion | Christianity, Bwiti, Islam | ||||
| Government | Mandate | ||||
| Historical era | 20th century | ||||
| - | Kamerun partitioned | July 20, 1920 | |||
| - | Integration into Cameroon and British Cameroons | October 1, 1960 | |||
| Currency | French franc (1918–45) CFA franc (1945–61) | ||||
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French Cameroons (French: Cameroun), or Cameroun, was a French colonial Mandate territory in French Equatorial Africa, now part of Cameroon.
History
Colony and mandate
The area of present-day Cameroon was claimed by Germany as a protectorate during the "Scramble for Africa" at the end of the 19th century. During World War I, it was occupied by French and Belgian troops.
In 1922 it was mandated to Great Britain and France by the League of Nations. The French mandate was known as Cameroun, in French West Africa. The British mandate was administered as two territories, Northern Cameroons and Southern Cameroons in British West Africa. British Northern Cameroons consisted of two non-contiguous sections, divided by where the Nigerian and Cameroun borders met.
Independence
French Cameroun became independent in January 1960, and Nigeria was scheduled for independence later that same year, which raised question of what to do with the British territory. After some discussion (which had been going on since 1959), a plebiscite (British Cameroons referendum) was agreed to, and held on 11 February 1961. The Muslim-majority Northern area opted for union with Nigeria, and the Southern area voted to join Cameroon.[1]
Northern Cameroons became a region of Nigeria on 31 May 1961, while Southern Cameroons became part of Cameroon on 1 October. In the meantime, the area was administered as a French Colony, in French West Africa.
See also
- French Equatorial Africa
- League of Nations Mandate
- List of French possessions and colonies
- French colonial empire
- French colonial flags
- French West Africa
References
- ↑ Nohlen, D, Krennerich, M & Thibaut, B (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p177 ISBN 0-19-829645-2
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to French West Africa. |
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