The Slave Trade and Military Formation under Colonialism: The Case of French West Africa

Abstract This paper explores the origins of the African colonial military’s ethnic composition. I argue that colonial powers believed that ethnic groups in regions heavily affected by the slave trade were “martial races,” and because of this stereotype, certain ethnic groups affected by the transatlantic slave trade were more likely to be recruited into the colonial military. The paper tests the argument with ethnicity-level slave trade data and recruitment records from the Tirailleurs Sénégalais in colonial French West Africa. Using various specifications, including instrumental variable estimates and spatial lags, an analysis of ethnicity-level recruitment quota provides evidence consistent with the theory. The findings of this study help us to better understand the formation of the indigenous military in the former colonies and the political effects of the slave trade.