History History

Pottery and polished stone tools found in the southeast of the country testify to human occupation in the Neolithic period

As elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, it is the "blackout". The Sahara is drying up and what was a fertile area is becoming an impassable barrier.

Guinea was part of the Mandingo kingdom, vassal of the rich kingdom of Ghana. The Mandingos ensured the supply and passage of caravans of gold, salt and slaves to the regions of North Africa. But the Almoravids, attracted by all this wealth and eager to extend their Muslim faith, were to cause the fragmentation and then the fall of the great empire.

Soundiata Keïta gathers around him the Mandingo clan and rises against the oppression of the kingdom of Ghana. He defeated his adversaries at the battle of Kirina in 1235 and thus laid the foundations of the Mali empire. His capital was then Niani (today a village located in the north of Upper Guinea). A part of the current territory of Guinea is thus part of this new empire, which will prosper for more than two centuries.

The hegemony of the Mali empire was challenged by vassals who broke away from its tutelage and weakened it. Thus the armies of the vassal state of Songhai took and burned Niani around 1450, marking the beginning of a long period of decline for the empire and the advent of a new regional power.

The Portuguese explorers, in their quest for gold and, above all, for the shortest route to India, were the first to set up trading posts on this coast, which they named "Guinea" (country of the Blacks).

The trade in "ebony wood", which began in the 15th century, was organized and intensified. It will bleed the continent during more than three centuries of trade.

The first European trading posts were established on the banks of the Rio Nunez. The Europeans did not venture far inland. They made agreements with the natives for the delivery of slaves and developed enclaves on the coast where the caravans ended up. The state of Gabou, populated mainly by Malinke, based its trade on this trade by raiding the Fulani and organizing caravans.

A wave of Fulani migration is sweeping through Fouta Djalon. These Islamicized herders chased away the Malinke who were there. In 1725, the Islamic holy war consecrated the Fulani hegemony over Fouta and established a theocratic regime

A charismatic personality emerged who would mark the history of the sub-region: Oumar Tall, a Toucouleur from the banks of the Senegal River. He studied in Mauritania and then in Fouta Djalon and made his pilgrimage to Mecca. There he earned the title of "el-Hadj". After a long stay in the East, in 1833, he took the way back, dragging behind him a growing crowd of enthusiastic devotees. He settled in Dinguiraye (present-day Upper Guinea), where he created a fortress, bought rifles and, with his title of Khalifa, declared a holy war. He quickly conquered his neighbors. But his progress was blocked by the French. However, he carved out an empire towards the east, as far as the Dogon country, where he died in 1864

A Scotsman, Mungo Park, decided to find out where and how the Niger flows - the hypothesis at the time being that the river ended at the gates of the desert. During his first trip, in 1795-1797, he noticed that on the contrary, the Niger flowed southward into the Malian territory.

The Treaty of Paris confirmed France's control over a territory then known as the Rivières du Sud

Having learned the Arabic language and having converted to Islam, René Caillé left Boké and crossed the Fouta Djalon on foot with the objective of reaching Timbuktu, a city then forbidden to Christians. Leaving alone, without financial aid or military escort, he finally reached Timbuktu on April 20, 1828.

Traders from Bordeaux signed agreements with local chiefs in the coastal regions, where they established new trading posts for gold, ivory and precious woods (mahogany and teak). The Rivières du Sud was then a territory under the jurisdiction of Dakar and extended to the Ivory Coast and Benin until 1893

While the struggle for the French colonial conquest raged in Fouta Djalon, Aimé Olivier de Sanderval tirelessly travelled the region and acquired numerous estates to found his "kingdom".

Samory Touré, a Malinke from the vicinity of Kerouane, was a simple peddler like his paternal ancestors. His life changes when his mother is kidnapped by an enemy clan. Unable to fight against it, he fights with it and thus begins his career as a mercenary. Gradually building up a small army, he conquers a small territory, then attacks Kankan. Finally, in his race towards the north, he came up against the French, who, like him, were aiming for Bamako. The French took the city and defeated Samory's brother in 1883, then decided to get rid of Samory and marched on Kankan and Kissidougou, which they took. Samory then decided to abandon his empire without leaving anything behind and set up a new domain in the north of the Ivory Coast. Raids followed one another, and the almamy again came up against the army that he had left in the west.

Rivières du Sud became an autonomous French colony, now called "French Guinea and Dependencies" (Benin and Ivory Coast until 1893).

Noël Ballay became the first governor of French Guinea. He founded Conakry and tried to improve hygiene in the region, especially in the estuaries of the Baga country

Samory, in trying to return to his native land, was confronted by animists who blocked his way and he was finally trapped by Commander Lartigue in 1898. He was taken prisoner and deported to Gabon, where he died in 1900. A tireless war leader, he remains in the Guinean imagination one of the great figures of resistance to the European occupation.

Resistance to the French yoke was strong and took shape in numerous revolts: the Coniagui in 1902, the Fulani of Fouta with Alpha Yaya Diallo from 1906 to 1911, and the peoples of the forest from 1907 to 1912.

The railway from Conakry to Kankan was built to link the Atlantic coast to Niger

England ceded the islands of Loos to France. The country lived under the aegis of a governor whose authority was relayed by twenty administrators who had full power in the twenty circles they controlled. The traditional chieftaincies were left in place because, thanks to the granting of numerous privileges, they played the role of messengers of colonial power

The colony turned to cash crops (bananas, coffee, rubber, etc.) and Guinea quickly became one of the most prosperous French colonies.

The Rassemblement démocratique africain was formed in Bamako and a Guinean section opened in 1947. This became the Democratic Party of Guinea (PDG) in 1948. The young Ahmed Sékou Touré, a PTT employee, played an increasingly important political role. In 1953, while already in charge of the Union syndicale des travailleurs de Guinée (USTG), he became the head of the PDG. He was elected mayor of Conakry two years later.

The PDG triumphed in the elections for the territorial assembly. Sékou Touré became vice-president of the first Guinean government, with Governor Ramadier as president by right.

Sékou Touré opposed the idea of joining the Franco-African community proposed by de Gaulle. On September 28, 1958, during the referendum, Guinea was the only country to say no

Guinea's independence was proclaimed and Sékou Touré became the first president of the first Republic. The break with France was complete and all traces of its presence were systematically dismantled and repatriated. The country's economy was damaged. Sékou Touré created the syli to replace the CFA franc. However, most other Western countries decided to establish diplomatic relations with Guinea and his boldness earned the Conakry regime the sympathy of nationalist leaders, teachers... The political line of the PDG, which was socialist, evolved towards the Soviet model with a totalitarian ideology.

Sékou Touré launched a cultural revolution based on the Chinese model, creating state farms and revolutionary units. Guinea, which had been an exporter of many agricultural commodities before the revolution, sank into near-starvation misery following the dismantling of ancestral agrarian traditions and the establishment of state farms. This so-called popular and revolutionary regime, which discouraged all opposition through state violence, provoked a massive exodus of Guineans to neighboring countries. On the diplomatic front, the country turned inward.

The attempted invasion by the Portuguese triggered a great purge the following year, which struck the population with terror

The market women's revolt broke out in response to new measures to discourage small private trade. The riot, which broke out in Conakry, soon spread to many cities. The revolt ceased with the re-establishment of private trade and led Sekou Toure to relax his policies.

After the re-establishment of diplomatic relations in 1975, Giscard d'Estaing was the first president of a Western country to visit Guinea. At the same time, Sékou Touré undertook to renew ties with his neighbors.

Sékou Touré dies in a hospital in Cleveland, USA.

A military coup was instigated by colonels of the regular army. A Military Committee for National Recovery (CMRN) was established and Lansana Conté became president. The new leaders appealed to donors to help rebuild the country. Lansana Conté established the Guinean franc, closed the old banks, privatized many state-owned enterprises, and massively reduced the number of civil servants

Attempted coup d'état aborted by Prime Minister Diarra Traoré, while the president was away.

The rule of law was established, with the drafting of a fundamental law and the setting up of a two-party regime. The military returned to the barracks

The multi-party system is recognized

Presidential elections were held. Lansana Conté won with just over 50% of the vote, while his main opponent, Alpha Condé, received 20%.

Lansana Conté again won the election in the first round with 56.12% of the vote, while Alpha Conde was arrested and subsequently tried for "undermining state security

Conflicts in Liberia and Sierra Leone have spilled over into Guinea, including repeated raids by elements of the Liberian army. These conflicts led to an influx of thousands of refugees into Forest Guinea

Lansana Conté won the presidential election again with a score of 95.6% against a single candidate. But the population was suffering, with the cost of living rising steadily while wages stagnated. At that time, the president was already seriously ill

Lansana Conté died. Captain Moussa Dadis Camara announced the dissolution of the government and all institutions.

The putschists rallied most of the generals to their cause and elected Moussa Dadis Camara as head of the National Committee for Democracy and Development (CNDD), which they had created.

The Prime Minister appointed by the CNDD, Kabiné Komara, announced the composition of his government, in which ten of the twenty-seven ministers were military. At the same time, Moussa Dadis Camara presented himself as the champion of the anti-corruption and anti-drug fight and staged himself during ubiquitous interrogations broadcast on television. This is the "Dadis show".

A peaceful demonstration was organized by the opposition in a stadium in Conakry. Its purpose was, among other things, to ask Dadis to solemnly reiterate his promise to organize elections in which he would not run. The "red berets" of the presidential guard intervened: shots were fired into the crowd, opponents were beaten, and at least 156 people were killed or disappeared. The shockwaves were commensurate with the massacre and Guinea returned to the international spotlight for sordid reasons.

Aboubacar "Toumba" Diakité shot Dadis Camara during an argument. The latter was seriously injured and evacuated to Morocco. Sékouba Konaté, the junta's number two, then took power

General Konaté, who became president of the transition, opened the way for a return to civilian rule in the country in a speech in which he reached out to the opposition. Jean-Marie Doré, following the Ouagadougou agreements, was appointed Prime Minister of the transitional government and charged with organizing the elections for the next president.

Despite some organizational problems, especially with the establishment of the electoral lists, the first round of the presidential elections took place.

Alpha Conde, the RPG candidate, became president by beating the UFDG candidate, Cellou Dalein Diallo, with 52.5% of the vote. A "new era" was announced. President Conde quickly faced difficulties in getting the country back on track in all its components. However, he succeeded in re-establishing relations with international financial institutions, improving the state of public finances and achieving encouraging macroeconomic results.

The Ebola epidemic that broke out at the end of 2013 put a stop to the momentum generated by the new leadership. The country, along with two of its neighbors, Liberia and Sierra Leone, will be isolated from the rest of the world for many months. The end of the epidemic is announced for June 2016. More than 2,500 people will have died in Guinea

Alpha Conde, with the support of the RPG, was reappointed to lead the country for five years. With the end of the Ebola epidemic and in the continuity of the efforts already undertaken, the country is moving forward and growth is recovering

Alpha Conde promulgated a new constitution that was highly controversial but approved by referendum in March, paving the way for his bid for a third term

New presidential elections were held and Alpha Conde won. But the results were not recognized by the opposition and violent clashes broke out across the country.

Lieutenant Colonel Doumbouya led a coup d'état at the head of the Special Forces group. The Comité national du rassemblement pour le développement (CNRD) seized power and announced the suspension of the constitution and the dissolution of the government and institutions.

A Transition Charter was published, confirming Lieutenant Colonel Doumbouya as President of the Transition. It provides for the appointment of a National Council of the Transition to serve as parliament and to draft the future constitution.

Mohamed Béavogui was appointed Prime Minister. The ministers of the transitional government were appointed at the same time, many of them from civil society.