Aniaba, the African protégé of Louis XIV
The appearance of a musketeer of “dark complexion” in the second part of the film adaptation of Martin Bourboulon, The Three Musketeers: Milady (2023) aroused the questioning of certain spectators on the historical reality of his presence. Was this another production that had given in to the siren calls of wokism? While a new TV series is in preparation: Black Musketeer on Disney+, we said to ourselves that it was time to demystify the subject.
By Franco | Last update: 07/17/2024
The origins of the Aniaba affair
To understand the source of the dilemma in this fast-moving story, we need to look at the (*1) peoples of the home region of Aniaba, the protagonist of our exciting adventure.
Aniaba belonged to the Eotilé ethnic group, a people of fishermen from a string of isolated islands in West Africa and mainly located on Assôkô-Monobaha, a large island in southeastern Ivory Coast. Around 1670, the Éotilé welcomed on their soil allied migrant peoples in search of asylum, the Essouma, coming from of Issiny, a region of the neighboring Gold Coast (present-day Ghana). In accordance with their tradition of welcoming individuals who can participate in their economic development and more generally in their survival in the face of the ambitions of neighboring peoples, the Éotilé cede a portion of their island to new arrivals.
As is also customary in such circumstances, a royal alliance marriage is celebrated between the two peoples in order to seal their rapprochement and facilitate their assimilation. Thus, Aïko, King Éotilé, offers his sister Ba to Zena, King Essouma, who finding her too young, marries his nephew. This alliance through marriage allows the Éotilé and the Essouma to now be of the same royal lineage and to ratify a non-aggression pact. The descendants of such a lineage by negotiation are not free, they are considered children (slaves) of the court due to the servility status of their mother. Anabia, adopted son of the Essouma ruling family, takes the name of the ruling family, Anabia.
It appears that Aniaba, although of noble descent but too far from the throne in a matrilineal system, cannot claim to inherit power but the French, ignorant of the subtleties of local customs and his “slave” status, will think him heir natural of the kingdom.
French expansion in West Africa
In this second half of the 17th century, the African coasts are the new aspirations of European powers. France is hungry for wealth in order to replenish its coffers weighed down by wars with its European neighbors. The low returns on investments of successive Companies (West India Companies, Senegal Company, etc.) and the past failures of evangelization missions in this region generated great hopes in the Compagnie de la Côte d’Or et de Guinée to establish French domination on the coasts of West Africa in the face of Dutch ambitions.
Jean-Baptiste du Casse, a merchant marine captain from Béarn, Director of the Compagnie du Sénégal and having prospered thanks to triangular trade advises the creation of fixed settlements with forts that would enable goods to be stored for sale at profitable times.
It is in this context of commercial rivalry and great hopes that in 1687, an expedition of protection, prospecting and evangelization departing from La Rochelle will take the road towards the coasts Guinean with the aim of establishing permanent establishments there in order to stock up on slaves, for the triangular trade, and gold, of which it is said in abundance in the region.
The expedition that brought Aniaba to France (1687)
In this summer of 1687 (*2), the Tempête, this light frigate of 250 tons, 28 cannons and capable of transporting up to 150 men, sets sail, with its orders, Ducasse. He had just been integrated and appointed lieutenant in the royal navy because of his many brilliant actions and his connections. He was given command of the frigate the Tempête with the mission of protecting the coasts of Africa which were then plundered by pirates posing as French:
“Robans flew the French flag and, thanks to this subterfuge, engaged in acts of pillage, ransomed the coasts of Guinea, kidnapped the Negroes whom they were going to resell in Saint-Domingue. » (*3)
On board were religious from the Order of Saint Dominic, including Father François Gonzalves and Father Henri Cerizier, whose mission was to preach the gospel and establish missions that had failed during previous expeditions.
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On their arrival in Assinie, on December 24 of the same year, the crew was received with respect by King Essouma and the French were allowed to settle there. We also report the presence on site during the negotiations of a certain “Knight of Amon” who will have a leading role in our story a little later. This is the ship captain Jean de Caupenne d’Amou aboard the flute La Loire then on the way to Asia. We know that Ducasse and Damon know each other well since the second served for a long time under the first’s orders.
They were entrusted with two native teenagers, “judged by the missionaries to be of above-average intelligence”(*4): Aniaba, the young prince-slave then aged around fifteen, accompanied by his cousin Banga, also of royal lineage, as a token of loyalty, in order to instruct and raise them in Christianity.
Two weeks later, on January 2, 1688, the mission left Assinie, Ducasse returned to the Americas (*5) and our two colored servants were sent to France with a letter of recommendation from Father Gonzalves in their pocket presenting Aniaba as of noble blood and the crown prince of the kingdom of Assinia. Opinions differ on the extent of the priest’s knowledge of Aniaba’s real status, suggesting that it was in the interest of the priest and the Chevalier d’Amou to obtain the good graces and financial support of Louis XIV for the continuation of their business in the region.
Father Gonzalves was going to leave for neighboring countries (*6) accompanied by a few missionaries who would all die there in the months that followed. Father Cerizier remained in Assinia, now under the French flag, with six slaves made available to him by King Zéna.
Aniaba's arrival and early life in France (1688-1691)
According to the stories of Father Labat (*7), it is a certain Captain Compere, commander of ‘a merchant ship en route to France, which would have brought young Aniaba and his cousin back to France to act as his valets, but Aniaba ‘ would have been taken from him by people who had an interest in making him appear as a prince in the Court and the young man did not have to be asked much to support this deception which was advantageous to him”.
Upon his arrival in France in 1688, Aniaba was accommodated with a Parisian pearl merchant, a man named Hyon, who was in business with the trading companies of Senegal and Guinea. It is believed that he spent his days discovering Paris and on the advice of Mr. Hyon, he entered Notre-Dame de Paris. History says that he was then seized with great spiritual emotion while walking through the main nave of the cathedral.
Testimonies agree that Anabia was a particularly gifted boy, brilliant and charismatic to the point of leaving no one indifferent. Not even King Louis XIV to whom it was presented in 1690 through Madame de Maintenon who was in contact with Hyon. Particularly seduced by the character, by his desire to embrace the Christian faith following the education of Notre-Dame and perhaps also enchanted by new prospects of permanent installation of France in Guinea, Louis XIV took him under his wing.
The king demanded that he be given an excellent education, so he was taught classical languages and religion. When he was deemed sufficiently educated, he was baptized on August 1, 1691 (*8) by the bishop of Meaux , Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, in the Chapelle des Missions Étrangères in Paris; thus he was converted to Catholicism under the first name of Louis Jean in honor of his godfathers: Jean-Baptise de Lagny, general intendant of commerce in France in the name and by order of King Louis XIV.
Thus under the protection of the favorite of the king and of the king himself, who gave him the means to lead a comfortable lifestyle, Louis Jean Aniaba lived like a well-educated young nobleman.
And Banga...
The story of Banga, is little known. Thanks to his noble lineage, he also had access to a French-style education and training that led to him becoming an officer in one of the king’s regiments. He was also baptized by Bossuet.
In 1695, Banga was brought back to Assinie for reasons unknown to us but it is believed that he had not originally wanted to leave Assinie and that he had left there his beloved. We can assume, therefore, that he wanted to return there as quickly as possible. We know that on June 3 (*9), he left the port of La Rochelle aboard the frigate < em>Faucon-Anglais by Jean-Baptiste de Gennes. This frigate of 260 men and 46 cannons was accompanied by 5 ships forming a squadron responsible for disturbing the English establishments in Senegal and Gambia. On August 25, De Gennes, believing that he had fulfilled his mission and wishing to leave for Brazil, confided Banga to a buccaneer who, going towards the Red Sea, could drop him off on his native land of Assinie.
We find him later in our story when Aniaba returned to Assinie, which leads us to assume that he remained in his native kingdom after leaving France, perhaps as an interpreter.
Aniaba's French life and ambitions for him (1692-1701)
After the departure of his cousin, Aniaba continues his life as a gentleman. He is credited with a dissolute life animated by gambling and women; his lifestyle costs him dearly. He received military training among the musketeers (*10) in order to learn fencing and horse riding. He was appointed second lieutenant in the King’s regiment. Then he was issued with an officer’s certificate and an annual pension of twelve thousand pounds. He is said to have participated in battles in Hainaut in Belgium. It is also reported that he was not often seen in his charge, perhaps he had taken leave from his position. The fact remains that in 1699, his misconduct led to his being transferred from Normandy, where he became a retired Captain in Creder’s regiment, garrisoned in Amiens in Picardy. He is credited with several children with French women.
In 1698, the knight Damon, on his way to Benin, passed through Assinie. He concluded an agreement with the Essouma, giving the French the right to install a fort there and access to the gold with which the country is said to be full. We do not know if access to the mines is on Ehotilé territory or if it is controlled by the Essouma, but the fact remains that Damon needs to have control over them to achieve his ends.
He left with the assurance that the French would be well received when the time was right.
When in the year 1700, Damon learned from his local sources that the king of Assinia is dead, he feels that an opportunity presents itself. He sent the Minister of Marine a letter indicating that Prince Aniaba, who was in France, being the heir to the throne of Assignia now vacant, it would be appropriate to seize this chance.
It is unclear whether Damon deliberately lied to serve his interests or whether he was unaware of the impossibility of Aniaba taking power in his kingdom. We also do not know the extent of Aniaba’s involvement but we know that Damon had written to Anabia to inform her of it and that he had to write a letter to the king to this effect and that in any case he did not had no choice, at the risk of losing all his privileges, see “end up in the Bastille”.
Anabia having no choice and perhaps even believing in the success of the operation, complied and sent a letter to the minister on June 19, 1700, indicating his wish to regain his kingdom in order to serve the greatness of the France and build a fort there.
Louis XIV will then say to his protégé, already considered the new sovereign of his kingdom “Prince Anabia, there is no more difference between you and me than black and white”.
In 1700, Anabia was introduced to Father Godefroy Loyer, a Jacobin monk from Rennes recently appointed to create a mission in Guinea.
The Order of l’Etoile Notre-Dame (1701)
Before leaving France, Aniaba informed the king of his wish to use all his efforts to convert his future subjects and of his wish to institute an order of chivalry in honor of the Blessed Virgin in order to to distinguish them. Louis XIV and Bossuet agreed and the name was found “Order of the Star of Notre-Dame”.
Aniaba had the court painter, Augustin-Oudart Justinat, make a painting depicting him kneeling, in the presence of the king and Bishop Bossuet, receiving the mark of his order from the hands of the Blessed Virgin descending from heaven accompanied by the child Jesus (*11). He donated the painting to the church of Notre-Dame in which on February 12, 1701 (*12), he is presented by Bossuet to Cardinal de Noailles on his return from Rome who officially presents him with the white cord of her order (*13). He enthroned as first knight of his order, the painter Justinat, in gratitude for the painting. The painting remained in Paris, it was exhibited for a time in the cathedral then taken down after disillusionment. He was never found.
On the way to Africa (1701)
On February 19, 1701, Aniaba, before setting out for the port of La Rochelle, left it to the Minister of the Navy to pay his numerous debts that he had contracted in Paris due to his train of exuberant life.
On March 6, Michel Bégon, the intendant of Rochefort, had squadrons prepared for Guinea, including the vessel the Poli which would be commanded by the knight Damon, whom he hoped would leave before the end of May. Accompanying him will be two ships from the Compagnie de Saint-Domingue, the Impudent and the Hollande.
On March 15, Damon wrote from Rochefort:
“Monseigneur, all the diligence that I could do on the way did not prevent me from taking seven days to get here; the paths become impassable due to the overflow of water; I arrived in this port last Saturday… Mr Aniaba is in La Rochelle, where I saw him in passing; always stubborn about leading useless people into his country. I informed him that nothing can be added to the number that you have set, Monseigneur, and that we will ship provisions for thirty-two people for a year in accordance with orders.
I beg you Monsignor to give your orders regarding the expenses of Mr. Aniaba while he is on the ground because he is furious when he is without money. The intendant has given notice; secretly the merchants of La Rochelle to no longer give anything on credit. ; because under this foot he is a man who lets nothing escape…. I think we will be able to set sail after the holidays. »
On April 18, the squadron finally left La Rochelle with on board the Poli, Damon and his crew, Father Loyer accompanied by another Jacobin, Father Jacques Villard, Aniaba, a a certain Dumesnil who had been appointed as his confidant and Godot his young valet.
On April 29, while sailing along Spain, a storm broke out, carrying away part of the rear of the Poli. Captain Baffet’s Impudent lost its mainmast, forcing him to throw overboard part of his merchandise and planks intended to build the Assinie establishment.
On May 1, the Poli was attacked by privateers coming from Morocco who broke their bowsprit mast at the first collision, which gave the Poli the opportunity to escape.
During this perilous and long journey (6) which takes him to Assinia, the arrogance of Aniaba and his behavior exasperates everyone. It is reported that he refuses to speak to the blacks on the ship whom he considers inferior and each stopover is an opportunity for debauchery. His manners annoy Damon with whom he ends up falling out. Father Loyer writes (2):
“On next day Sunday, early in the morning, three Negroes came in a canoe to our ship, they brought us three pineapples… one of them having seen Mr. Aniaba drinking tea, asked for some: they wouldn’t give him any, because, he was told, only white people drank it; but he was not satisfied with this reason, and having shown Mr. Aniaba, he said that since this Negro drank it, he could well drink it. Mr. Aniaba felt shocked by this response; but that did not prevent him from going ashore, and leading there with the local Negroes, during the eight days that we remained there, a life which edified no one. »
Arrival at Assinie (1701)
June 25, 1701 (2), finally arriving, a little before noon, on the outskirts of the kingdom of ‘Assinie, natives come to meet them despite rough seas. Recognizing the captain, the Chevalier d’Amou, who had already made several trips to Assinie, they began a welcoming ceremony in honor of the French, and festivities which would last three days.
On May 27, everyone went ashore and was welcomed by the king Akasini, Yamoké the king’s brother and a large delegation of lords, coming from the capital Assôkô. He warmly thanked Damon and the king for taking great care of Aniaba. The French are authorized to build a fort, Fort Saint-Louis, and Father Loyer is allowed to begin his mission of evangelization. Damon came back on board very satisfied with this negotiation.
The next day was devoted to reconnaissance of the place chosen for the establishment of the fort where a few days later, the king’s brother and the French sealed their agreements:
“After they had drunk as they wished, Captain Yamoké called for the French, who at that time were twelve or fifteen on shore. Then he sent to cut a branch of a tree, and having taken it he gave it to Captain Emond, who planted it in the ground in our presence, then he had it touched to all the French present, declaring aloud, that in the name of the King and of the whole nation, he gave this Land, and delivered it into the power of the French, to build a Fort there. …” (2)
On July 9, a solemn reception took place in Assôkô in the presence of the royal power and a dozen French people including Damon, Father Loyer and Aniaba as well as Banga his cousin, who we find here, as an interpreter . It seems that the Essouma appreciated that the French were at home rather than the English or the Dutch. The king insisted that Damon and Aniaba reconcile, to which Damon responded favorably, and he asked his guests the reason for their visit. To which the French, after endless courtesies, replied that they wanted to “establish the Christian faith, and to teach its subjects the path to Heaven, and together to establish good commerce between its peoples and the François, their former friends, from whom they subsequently draw great help, both for their needs and to defend them against their enemies, had attracted us from the depths of France, and brought them to their home, in the hope that they would respond for their part to the good intentions that his Most Christian Majesty has for them, so that Mr. Aniaba present there, and the same Banga who serves as our interpreter, could serve as guarantors for us”. The king thanked them for their frankness and adjourned the audience.
We had thought for a time of giving governance of the fort to Aniaba but the idea was quickly abandoned. He was not recognized by the royal power as a legitimate heir. He even caused the irritation of the regent in place, Akasini, with his haughty attitude. The French complained about his attitude but nothing changed. He was even suspected of plotting against the interests of the French by trying to convince the Essouma of the deceitfulness of the French. Without success, he tried to convince neighboring peoples to prevent the construction of the fort. To displease the French, he stripped himself of his clothes and his religion.
The presents which had been transmitted by Louis XIV to Damon for the coronation of Aniaba were never given to him; they were offered to King Akasini, his brother and his nephew.
Aniaba was gradually abandoned, including by the Essuma, and confined among the Ehotilé.
The three ships and Damon then left Assinie, on September 23, 1701, leaving our two missionaries Loyer and Villard, a governor, a lieutenant of the king, the commander De la Vie, as well as the garrison composed of 35 men to guard the fort. Dumesnil, who had been appointed commander, died as did the ship’s royal writer. (14)
The attack on Fort Saint-Louis by the Dutch (1702)
Around July 14, 1701, construction work on the modest Fort Saint-Louis began and was completed the following month.
The following year, on November 4, 1702, a squadron of four Dutch ships passed within sight of the fort. On the 5th, a Dutch ship disguised under the French flag approached the coast but did not succeed in fooling the French. He then left to join his squadron not far away.
On November 11, the Dutch squadron anchored near the fort in the middle of the afternoon.
On Monday the 13th in the morning, the Dutch ships, in response to warning shots from the French, shelled the fort. A cannonball having hit a beehive adjacent to the fort, the French had to leave quickly, which was taken for an escape by the Dutch who landed immediately. But the French returned with the help of their Essouma allies who ambushed them so that the fifty Dutch people who landed were all killed or taken prisoner. The dead were stripped and the natives cut off their hands, feet and heads, which discouraged the Dutch ships which left the same day. None of the French were killed but the eldest son of King Essouma had his leg torn off by a cannonball, he died three days later.
This put an end to the attack on the fort. Aniaba was conspicuous by his absence during the fighting; he had gone to take shelter for three days, which further reduced the little remaining esteem that the French had for him. On his return, he congratulated the commander on his success.
The end of the French establishment in Assinie (1703-1704)
The Dutch, who were worried about their prisoners, sent local emissaries in their pay to negotiate a ransom. Not only did they not pay any ransom but they were so skillful in negotiation that it was the natives who paid high compensation. The French, happy to no longer have to feed the prisoners, never intervened in the negotiation. The French gradually lost the affection of Africans.
Father Loyer, after spending nearly two years in Assinie, left in March 1703. Only a few French people remained who had been forgotten there without sufficient resources; they were reduced to selling their clothes to be able to survive. It was not until July 1704 (15) that they were recovered by Captain Grobois aboard the ‘Carried away on his way to Benin, in order to stock up on slaves for South America where he was to join Damon’s Poli. Loyer found Father Villard in France who had been declared dead. Fort Saint-Louis was abandoned, which put an end to French ambitions in Ivory Coast for a very long time.
Anabia continues his life without the French (1704-?)
Aniaba, for his part, had wanted to return to France where life was undoubtedly more pleasant and he had undoubtedly left a few children there. He boarded one of the ships of a French company but on the way back the captain disembarked him on the Ghanaian coast, again because of his arrogant attitude? We know that he had become a nuisance and in order not to embarrass the king, we suppose that they got rid of him as quickly as possible so that he would not return to court.
It is said that he took up the cause of the Dutch and the English and even became advisor to the king of Quita in 1704, under the name Hannibal Lewis. But according to some he died there three years later.
It is also said that he was seen in France or a few years later by a Dutch sales representative who was traveling between Ouidah and Accra and described him as the richest and most successful member of the community (16). It will remain a mystery…
In conclusion...
To make a link with the modern era, let us recall the words of King Amon N’Douffou V, king of Krindjabo, capital of kingdom of Sanwi in Ivory Coast which had already made international news in 1992 when Michael Jackson, in search of his origins, had gone there. The king indicated in 2019 that his kingdom shared a history with Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, where a prince had been baptized there in 1687. He then announced his desire to contribute to the reconstruction of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris following the fire: “The images disturbed my sleep and I could not spend the night, because this cathedral represents a strong link between my kingdom and France. I am in full consultation with my notables, we are going to make a donation for the reconstruction of this monument”.
Chronology
Birth of Anabia
Anabia leaves Africa
Baptism
Military training
Transfer to Amiens
Death of the king of Assinia
Foundation of l'Ordre de l’Etoile Notre-Dame
Departure for Assinie
Arrival at Assinie
Attack of the Dutch
Abandonment of the fort
Bibliography / Notes
1. Cohabitation entre les Essouma et les Eotilé à Assôkô aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles (2018 – Revue Performances) & Les esclaves dans les sociétés Akan de la Côte de l’Or : entre intégration parfaite et exclusion (2018 – Revue RAMRes) par Adjé Séverin Angoua
2. Relation du voyage du royaume d’Issyny : Côte d’Or, païs de Guinée, en Afrique… (1714) par Godefroy Loyer
3. Histoire maritime de Bayonne. Les corsaires sous l’ancien régime (1895) par Édouard Ducéré
4. Histoire des colonies françaises et de l’expansion de la France dans le monde (1931) par Maurice Delafosse
5. Étude sur la France maritime et coloniale par le baron Robert du Casse (1876)
6. Relation du voyage du royaume d’Issyny : Côte d’Or, païs de Guinée, en Afrique… (1714) par Godefroy Loyer
7. Notre librairie (1987) Clef
8. Correspondance de Bossuet Janvier 1701-octobre 1702 (1909-1925) | Jacques Bénigne Bossuet
.9 Relation d’un voyage fait en 1695, 1696 et 1697 aux côtes d’Afrique, détroit de Magellan, Brésil, Cayenne et isles Antilles, par une escadre des vaisseaux du Roi, commandée par M. de Gennes (1699) par François Froger
10. Bulletin de la Société de l’histoire de Paris et de l’Ile-de-France | 1910 (Société de l’histoire de Paris et de l’Île-de-France
11. Les dernières années de Bossuet (1928-1929) par François Le Dieu
12. Catalogue analytique des archives de M. le baron de Joursanvault (1838)
13. Recueil de tous les costumes des ordres religieux et militaires avec un abrégé historique (1778) par Jacques-Charles Bar
14., 15. Archives historiques de la Saintonge et de l’Aunis (1930)
16. Effects of the Atlantic Slave Trade on Some West African Societies (1975) par Albert Van Dantzig
· Royaume Essoua d’Assinie – royaumeessoumadassinie.com
· Histoire générale des voyages, ou Nouvelle collection de toutes les relations de voyages par mer et par terre qui ont été publiées jusqu’à présent dans les différentes langues. (1746-1801) par John Green, Antoine François Prévost, Étienne-Maurice Chompré…
· Dix ans à la Côte d’Ivoire (1906) | François-Joseph Clozel
· Prince Aniaba. Le mousquetaire ivoirien de Notre-Dame de Paris (2023) | Serge Bilé
Photo credits
1. Carte particulière de la partie principale de la Guinée située entre Issini et Ardra par le Sr d’Anville (1729) – Bibliothèque nationale de France
