Foundation of a slave society

The kingdom was founded by Vakaba Touré, a former dyula (trader), in 1848.^[4][5] Touré switched to being a marfatigi (gun-wielding warrior) and was in the service of Mori Wali Cisse and Karamogoba Diabi. In 1845, he with his cousin Vasanissi went to defend maternal relatives in Kulukoro against Cisse, Vanassi killed Cisse in an ambush and the cousins convinced his army to support them in an attack against the Diarrasouba Kingdom of Nafana. This force drove out the Diarrasouba and Vakaba established Odienné, his hometown, as the capital. The local kafu (a Malinké polity) Massala served as an early ally but Folon and Bodougou were forcefully annexed. Samatiguila retained independence and was closely associated,^[6] and whose Diabi religious and business class was among other leaders as well as warriors a recipient slaves.^[7] Touré altered the social structure and divided horonyi (freemen) into the elite warrior class and trader allies, with remnants diminishing in status.^[8] Atop the military hierarchy was the faama, whose commading force consisted of the sofakuntigiyi (slave generals), who were owned by the faama. The sofayi (soldiers) alternated between service and agricultural production.^[9] He had almost every village within his military's reach subjugated to the level of jonya (slavery),^[10] which was already present but less widespread.^[8] The kafus of Bodougou, Foulodougou, Nafana, and Nohoulou were attacked, with villages being destroyed, and prime targets for slave raiding.^[11] In the jonya system, it was theorized that slaves' children were to be free upon birth, but the need for bodies to support constant war efforts, exacerbated by French colonization in the kingdom's later history, caused this concept to be entirely dismissed.^[12] Similar to practices of the Ségou Empire, the warrior elite would designate conquered and captured peoples to agricultural production, conscription, or have them sold for resources incapable of being produced.^[10] Slaves would be sold north and west for guns and horses; they were sold south to the Bété and Gouro for cloth, kola nuts, and ivory.^[11]

Slaves were divided into three categories: captives, woloso, and forobajon. Forobajonyi were meant to be slaves for the community but were de facto personally owned by the Touré.^[7]

The kingdom was split into provinces while administration was focused in Odienné. The capital was fortified by two jin (defense walls) and an outer chain of 17 villages known as the sofadougou. These villages were populated with agricultural and military captives subject to immediate conscription for military affairs.^[13]

French colonization

Vakaba's rule ended in 1858 when, according to local tradition, he died due to an infected ant bite. His son Ibrahima^{[lower-alpha 1]} died within a year of succession during a lost battle at Korumba campaigning in Fuladu in 1859. Ibrahima's brother, VaMuktar^{[lower-alpha 2]}, ruled until 1875.^[15] His successor Magbe Madou put down a revolt between 1878 and 1879, by 1880 reestablishing unstable control. In July 1881, the brothers' nephew Samori Ture arrived with an alliance proposal. It was accepted by Madou who then received Ture's favorite daughter's, Soronasi, hand in marriage. Within this alliance Kabadougou was a periphery state but retained its independence. In 1888, Madou initiated a war against Diarrasouba Nafana and their ally, the Senufo of Nōōlu, when attacking the kola-producing Worodougou. In early 1892, Samori moved his armies to Kabadougou for a temporary stay in his travel to central Ivory Coast after his military failures against Louis Archinard and Henri Humbert in his old territory. That year Madou requested support in his war as his army was not strong enough. To the dismay of the French who hoped to ally with Nafana and Nōōlu, in August 1892 an allied force defeated the Diarrasouba at the battle of Kungbéni. The use of gunpowder firearms as opposed to cartridge left the Diarrasouba at a disadvantage during the rainy season, and whose retreating forces drowned in creeks and rivers. In the aftermath of the war, of Nafana's 170 villages 14 remained. In February 1893, Samori fled with assistance of Madou's forces due to an arriving French column commanded by Colonel Michel Combes. On 9 February, it went to Gbèlèba which was already burning and empty; the same occurred when he went to Odienné on 13 February. On 14 February, Koro was taken by a vanguard commanded by Captain Prost. Combes's pursuit ended in failure and French forces left.^[16]

Madou left for Dabakala with Samori in 1893, leaving his brother, Moriba Touré, to rule. Moriba's rule was characterized by his constant attempts to play off of Samori and the French to maintain power. His rule began with Odienné and Gbèlèba still burning, with the French outposted in the west at Bissandugu, Kerwané, and Siguiri. He refused to let people return to the areas affected by Samori's scorched earth between the Niger and Sankarani rivers as demanded by the latter. Those caught were sold for horses. Tension emerged between Moriba and Samori stemming from the former's lack of supplementary horses and retaliation against encroachment on his rule, even possibly wishing for his brother's permanent absence. Despite this tension, Samori still presented his relationship with Moriba to the French as confidently secure. Moriba however continued diplomatic attempts to manipulate the French, espousing hatred for Samori, love for the French, and asserted that he wished to reconquer lands as well as retain his slaves. His mode of communication was with the post at Bissandugu. Moriba declined the requests to build a post in Kabadougou May 1897 and to house a French official in and October, declaring he did not want an outpost in his territory and that an official who may visit anytime may reside in their post Bougunni, 225 kilometres (140 mi) north of Odienné, but must always return there. As an act of appeasement, he sent 10,000 kilograms (22,000 lb) of grain to the post at Bougunni. He also sent his son to be educated in Kayes, French Sudan. Dismissive of this diplomacy, Commandant Bertin issued for the Odienné post's construction, being done so on 29 December with Lieutenant Woeffel taking command. The struggle between the Touré and French continued.^[17]