Abstraite
Résumé
En 1659, les Français s’établirent à Saint-Louis du Sénégal, chef-lieu de la “concession du Sénégal”. Afin de mieux contrôler et administrer les échanges commerciaux, ils divisèrent la Sénégambie en deux zones administratives, plus ou moins fictives aux yeux des chefs locaux : “Saint-Louis et dépendances” et “Gorée et dépendances.” Dans les marchés d’esclaves et de gomme, les marchandises de traite importées par les Européens servaient de moyen d’échange, jouant le rôle d’une monnaie fictive. Les chefs et intermédiaires locaux participaient à l’organisation des activités commerciales : ils imposaient des taxes aux Européens et surveillaient à la fois le cours de la monnaie (la « barre ») et les prix des denrées. Dans ces marchés, les commerçants locaux se plaignaient fréquemment des fraudes qui perturbaient le bon déroulement du commerce.
- © 2026 by The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
Abstract
In 1659, the French settled in Saint-Louis, Senegal, which became the capital of the “Senegal concession.” In order to better control and administer trade, they divided Senegambia into two administrative zones, which were more or less fictitious in the eyes of the local chiefs: “Saint-Louis and its dependencies” and “Gorée and its dependencies.” In the slave and gum markets, the trade goods imported by Europeans served as a means of exchange, functioning as a kind of fictitious currency. Local chiefs and intermediaries took part in organizing commercial activities: they imposed taxes on Europeans and monitored both the currency rate (the “bar”) and the prices of goods. In these markets, local traders often complained about cases of fraud that disrupted trade.
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