Western Africa

Dakar

Art Makers (17)

Art Spaces (12)

Dakar, being the capital and largest city of the Independent Republic of Senegal, is now one of western Africa’s chief seaports, protected by the limestone cliffs of the cape and by a system of breakwaters. In 1677, the French took over the island of Gorée, off the coast of Cap-Vert, and used it as a base for the Atlantic slave trade. Attracted by the location on a natural harbor and its proximity to the island of Gorée, France soon annexed the village which is now Dakar. Since then, Dakar grew into a major port and a major city of the French colonial empire. It became the political center of French West Africa and replaced Saint-Louis as the federal capital. The opening in 1886 and in 1923 of two railway lines to Saint-Luis and French Sudan (now Mali) brought new transit trade to the port and stimulated cultivation and peanut-shipping. During the Second World War, Dakar gained notoriety due to the ruling Vichy French’s alliance with Germany. From 1959 to 1960, Dakar was the capital of the short-lived Mali Federation and in 1960 it became the capital of the Republic of Senegal. Culturally, Dakar has more recently been recognized for the “Dak’Art” Biennale of Contemporary Art.

Mentioned in this article