We don’t necessarily know it, but nearly 700 soldiers from the colonies who died during the First World War lie in three cemeteries in Bordeaux, the Pins Francs, the Chartreuse and Bordeaux Nord. They are Senegalese, Indochinese, Malagasy, Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian and Sudanese skirmishers. The Memories and Shares association, with associations of veterans, will pay tribute to them on Saturday at 11 a.m., in the military square of the Pins Francs cemetery.
The African skirmishers, who made up the corps of Senegalese skirmishers, will also be highlighted during the international history film festival in Pessac, which starts on Monday. Thursday, November 17 will be screened in preview Anthony Vadepied’s film with Omar Sy, Skirmisherswhich will be released in cinemas on January 4, 2023. A debate will be organized in the presence of the director and historian Anthony Guyon, author of the book History of the Senegalese skirmishers. 20 minutes questioned him.
How was France brought to seek soldiers in Africa to fight in the First World War?
There have always been intermediaries in the African ports colonized by Europeans. After the end of the slave trade and the abolition of slavery, we fell back on different crops such as rubber, and the peasants on the spot had to be protected. These intermediaries will thus take on an increasingly military function, and in 1857 this is rooted in by creating by imperial decree the corps of Senegalese skirmishers. It is a battalion, so 500 men, two thirds of whom are former slaves. Then as the 19th century progressed, they took part in the occupation of different territories.
And this body expands more and more?
In 1900 there were 6,000 men, 15,000 on the eve of the First World War, and 200,000 skirmishers went to war, either in Africa or in Europe. Everyone uses African soldiers during the war, the Belgians, the Germans, but the French were the only ones to bring them to European soil. Among the reasons, one can advance that France is in demographic deficit compared to Germany, and French colonization is perhaps less radical than German colonization. Finally, the French argument is based on the fact that African skirmishers would be excellent fighters, who can be adapted everywhere, which is false. There is a whole French propaganda around these African soldiers to reinforce the feeling of fear among the Germans, and it works.
What perception do French soldiers have of these African fighters?
There is skepticism, in particular because we are obliged to withdraw them from combat for six months: they hibernate. This is why there is a memory in Bordeaux, because they are then installed in camps in Gironde, and many in the Var as well. They are seasonal soldiers, and when the troops see them leaving the fight to go to the rear, there is a form of jealousy. But above all there is a lot of ignorance: we don’t understand each other. Often, the skirmishers do not even understand each other since we can speak Bambara, Peul…
How many victims do we deplore in their ranks?
We have around 160,000, 170,000 African soldiers who come to fight on European soil, and the losses are around 20%. Many skirmishers died outside the combat period: they died of diseases like the Spanish flu. From October 1914, the reports show that there are serious lung infections, frostbite on the feet… In haste, they are sent to the Var and then from 1916 to the Gironde.
How is it going for them in Gironde?
They are sent to the Courneau camp in La Teste-de-Buch, where the Natus necropolis erected in memory of the 936 riflemen who died there, almost burned down this summer with the great forest fires elsewhere. This camp is very exposed to the wind, in prefabricated huts which become soggy when it rains. So there are a lot of lung diseases, and a significant number of deaths.
Where do they fight in Europe?
They participate in major campaigns from 1914 until victory. At the end of 1916 they took part in the recapture of Fort Douaumont in Verdun, which brought them to light. In 1917 they were particularly used on the Chemin des Dames. This is the most complicated year for them. And in 1918 they are there to defend Reims. They are also sent to the Dardanelles to fight the Ottoman Empire.
Mathieu Vadepied’s film is called Skirmishersnot ” Senegalese skirmishers »an important choice, isn’t it?
Yes it’s interesting, because if we wanted to be fair, we would even call them the African skirmishers, because they came from all over Africa, and the more we advance in time, the less they are Senegalese from elsewhere. During the inter-war period, for example, skirmishers who were further away in French West Africa were favored in order to avoid a revolt in Senegal.
How did this body of Senegalese skirmishers evolve after the war?
After the war in France, military service was reduced in a context of rising pacifism. Conversely, it is increased for Africans, since it goes to three years with a system of drawing lots in the villages. This corps of Senegalese skirmishers proved its worth during the war, and on the French side it is hoped to rely more and more on the Empire, with the additional vision that Africa would be an inexhaustible reservoir of men. The tirailleurs corps then disappeared between 1958 and 1962, as the countries of sub-Saharan Africa obtained their independence.
Screening-debate of the film Tirailleurs, Thursday 17 November at 7 p.m., at the Jean Eustache cinema in Pessac.