Chapter 308: Colonial Treaty
The Sultan of Bam ultimately chose to retreat.
Large numbers of indigenous troops retreated in a swarm, with no order, appearing extremely chaotic.
Giuseppe naturally would not miss such a good opportunity. Upon discovering the indigenous people’s intention to retreat, he immediately ordered his troops to attack, aiming to completely disrupt the enemy’s deployment.
Attacking also requires skill. If they were to assault blindly, these indigenous people might abandon their retreat, hold their positions on the mountaintop, and fight to the death with the Spanish army.
Although the Spanish army would undoubtedly win in the end, it would waste more time and result in more troop casualties.
If a conservative attacking strategy were adopted, leaving some room for the indigenous people to retreat, they would become completely disorganized in their rush to withdraw, allowing the Spanish army to easily harvest the lives of the disorganized troops.
If they were lucky, another army from the east could occupy Foumbam before these indigenous people retreated back to it, in which case the Spanish army could launch a pincer attack and annihilate these indigenous people.
Even if the other army could not conquer Foumbam in a short period, it could prevent this large indigenous force from returning to Foumbam and demoralize the indigenous army.
As the Spanish army launched its attack, the indigenous people’s withdrawal from the mountain became even more panicked. The Sultan of Bam had intended to organize a counterattack by his soldiers, but he suddenly discovered that the army no longer obeyed his command.
In this chaotic situation, the soldiers could not hear the Sultan’s orders at all. Even if they could hear the Sultan’s orders, the soldiers might not be willing to carry them out.
Looking at the vast Spanish army charging towards the mountaintop before them, the indigenous people all had the same thought: retreating meant survival, while staying would mean certain death.
Compared to the disorganized indigenous people, the Spanish colonial army appeared orderly.
The soldiers steadily occupied each position, and with their rifles, they executed every indigenous soldier found in the positions.
In just two and a half hours, the Spanish soldiers had occupied the mountain terrain ahead, with indigenous soldiers lying on the ground, unconscious or dead, as far as the eye could see.
On the other side of the mountain, several thousand indigenous people were fleeing northward without stopping.
Since these indigenous people were already beyond the Spanish army’s weapon range, Giuseppe decided not to pursue them further.
In any case, these thousands of indigenous people could no longer alter the course of the war. The Spanish army’s priority was to quickly conquer the capital of the Kingdom of Bam, Foumbam, and occupy the entire Kingdom of Bam.
On the indigenous army’s side, after the Sultan of Bam finally escaped near Foumbam, the foremost troops brought him bad news: their capital, Foumbam, had already been occupied by the Spanish army.
This bad news immediately shook the indigenous army’s already low morale, and it plunged the Sultan of Bam, whose face had just begun to show a smile, back into despair.
With the Spanish army in pursuit behind them and their city occupied by the Spanish army ahead, these thousands of fleeing indigenous soldiers were caught in a pincer movement from the north and south, with no hope of survival.
After a moment of despair, the Sultan of Bam suddenly remembered that the main Spanish force was fighting him in the south; where would they have the troops to attack his capital?
Even if there were troops attacking his capital, it would definitely be a small force, not a large number.
Thinking of this, a glimmer of hope appeared in the Sultan of Bam’s eyes. He no longer hesitated and immediately issued the order: “The enemy’s main force is in our rear; the force occupying Foumbam is only a small contingent.
Retake our city. The Spaniards before us are only a small part; they cannot withstand our attack.”
Hearing what the Sultan said, a glimmer of hope also appeared in the eyes of the indigenous soldiers.
These soldiers had witnessed firsthand how the Spanish army had massacred their compatriots. The city before them was not only the capital of the kingdom but also where their families resided.
If they could not retake the city, the situation of their families would be unimaginable.
Therefore, whether for the Sultan or for their own families, they had to retake the city before them to have a chance of survival.
Thousands of indigenous people, under the Sultan’s orders, did not rest for long before launching an attack on Foumbam. A small number of indigenous people unwilling to fight further were also threatened by the Sultan’s Death Squad and reluctantly took up weapons to join the attack.
Although the Sultan’s most elite Musket Battalion was annihilated, as the leader of the entire kingdom, the Sultan still had other willing troops, including the Death Squad.
Under the threat of these Death Squads, soldiers under the Sultan and soldiers under other tribal chiefs dared not harbor any thoughts of resistance.
Although the Sultan’s Death Squad was not numerous, they were all equipped with muskets. These Death Squads were not polite with ordinary indigenous soldiers; if anyone dared to desert, the Death Squad soldiers would shoot them, even more ruthlessly than the Spaniards massacring the indigenous people.
Under the coercion of the Death Squad, thousands of indigenous soldiers marched en masse towards Foumbam.
In Foumbam, over 6,000 Spanish soldiers were already on high alert.
While Giuseppe led the Colonial Division in a direct confrontation with the indigenous army, an army of 6,000 men, composed of three Colonial Defense Regiments, had already launched an attack on the Kingdom of Bam from the east.
Due to the shorter distance, this army arrived around Foumbam the next day and launched its attack on the third day.
At that time, the Sultan of Bam had gathered the vast majority of the kingdom’s soldiers to counter the Spanish army’s attack.
The Sultan’s direct forces had all been deployed, leaving only a small number of troops belonging to other tribal chiefs within the Kingdom of Bam, totaling only a few thousand men.
Facing the Spanish army’s attack, these soldiers, composed of different tribes, scattered at the slightest touch, not daring to confront the Spanish army head-on.
Under the bombardment of 20 cannons, the defense forces of Foumbam were quickly destroyed. The Spanish army occupied this city of hundreds of thousands of people with little cost.
After occupying Foumbam, the Spanish army immediately implemented military management without hesitation and strictly prohibited any indigenous people from appearing outside their houses.
Any indigenous person who dared to leave their home, regardless of their purpose, would be executed.
Under such oppressive policies, the indigenous people dared not leave their homes, cowering in their houses and trembling as they awaited their fate.
After dealing with the indigenous people within the city, the Spanish army also freed up its hands to dig defensive positions south of Foumbam, quietly awaiting the arrival of the main force of the Kingdom of Bam.
As the thousands of indigenous people drew closer to Foumbam, the Sultan of Bam’s hope gradually faded.
Before him was not an unprepared and small Spanish force, but a prepared defensive position that had already been dug. The number of Spanish soldiers within the position was unclear.
Speaking of which, the contribution of the indigenous people within the city to the Spanish army was to be thanked.
The main reason the Spanish army was able to dig the defensive positions in such a short time was the sheer abundance of manpower from the indigenous people within the city.
With the help of these indigenous people, the positions began to take shape. The Spanish army then made some simple modifications, turning them into the seemingly impenetrable defensive positions they were now.
Gradually, the indigenous soldiers slowed their pace.
They stared blankly at the defensive positions before them, momentarily speechless.
*Gulp!*
Some indigenous soldiers involuntarily swallowed, their eyes filled with terror and panic.
“Fire!”
Seeing that these indigenous people had reached firing range, the Spanish army did not hesitate at all. The leading officer immediately gave the order to open fire.
Instantly, the sounds of various rifles firing and cannons launching were continuous, like thunder.
Boom! Bang bang!
A cannonball, by sheer coincidence, landed about 20 meters in front of the Sultan of Bam.
The indigenous soldiers standing there were instantly blown into pieces, and the shockwave from the cannonball’s explosion reached the Sultan of Bam at high speed, instantly making him dizzy and disoriented.
The Sultan of Bam was relatively lucky, only being affected by the shockwave from the cannonball’s explosion.
Some soldiers were not so lucky and were within the range of artillery shells, and were soon severely wounded by shell fragments.
For a time, the indigenous people were wracked with wailing. After a long period of fleeing, the morale of the indigenous army had long since collapsed.
Now, after being bombarded by artillery once more, even the indigenous people who were fortunate enough not to be hit by the shells couldn’t help but feel despair.
The enemy is in front, and the pursuers are behind; where is their way of survival?
The answer is that there is none.
To eliminate any future trouble, the Spanish Army will absolutely not be polite to these native soldiers.
Spain did not lack manpower, so before the action, Giuseppe had communicated with all the Spanish officers that this war was to eradicate these native soldiers.
From the Sultan of the Kingdom of Bam down to every native soldier of the Bam army, all are on the Spanish Army’s kill list.
Even ordinary commoners would have a portion cleared out, as Spain did not have enough grain to feed them.
Of course, on the surface, Spain still had to pretend to be a civilized country.
The stated cause of death for these indigenous people was not Spanish massacres, but rather plague or other diseases.
Isn’t it normal for tens of thousands of indigenous people to die from a plague? Anyway, this is what other countries are doing, so Spain won’t have any psychological burden for doing so.
This war ended quickly, with thousands of indigenous people not holding out for long.
The Spanish Army’s side was well-equipped, and their reserves of bullets and cannonballs were also completely sufficient.
Under fire suppression, the indigenous people couldn’t lift their heads. What was more fatal was that the high ground had been occupied by Spanish troops, and the indigenous people were in an open plain with no cover.
This was simply a sitting duck, and the Spanish Army would not miss such a perfect opportunity for target practice.
Furthermore, almost all of the native soldiers equipped with rifles were annihilated, leaving only the Sultan’s Death Squad with rifles.
The death squad was at the rear and could not advance under the fire suppression.
This also caused the indigenous army to have no ability to counterattack; they were like sitting ducks, only able to wait blankly for their own bullets to arrive.
After a day had passed, Giuseppe also arrived in Foumbam with the main force.
Upon learning the news that the indigenous people had been annihilated, Giuseppe was overjoyed and immediately ordered the soldiers to head to the Guinea Colony to deliver the news, so that Carlo could learn this good news as soon as possible.
At the same time, Giuseppe also conveyed the news to the Governor of Guinea Colony, requesting that the Governor dispatch officials to take over the entire Kingdom of Bam.
Because the Guinea Colony was directly adjacent to the Kingdom of Bam, the Kingdom of Bam will be incorporated into Spain’s Guinea Colony and will be under temporary military management before Spain completely integrates all colonies.
Only after Spain has completely dealt with the over a million indigenous people of the Kingdom of Bam will the militarized administration here be lifted, and immigrants dispatched for land development.
Of course, the laying of telegraph lines and the construction of train railways can begin immediately. Connecting the Kingdom of Bam by telegraph and railway will also facilitate subsequent operations against the Aro Confederacy and the Sokoto Caliphate.
The Aro Confederacy, the Kingdom of Niger, and further west, the Kingdom of Benin, the Kingdom of Dahomey, and others, were all included in Spain’s conquest plan.
After completely conquering these countries, Spain’s Guinea Colony could connect with the Gold Coast Colony, becoming a large colony similar to the Congo Territory.
In the future, Spain will only have four major colonies in Africa: South Morocco Colony, West African Colony, Guinea Colony, and Congo Territory.
These four colonies each possess development value and strategic importance, and are also the future foothold for Spain in Africa.
By the time Carlo received the telegram about Spain’s full occupation of the Kingdom of Bam, several more days had passed.
Upon hearing the news, Carlo was very pleased and personally issued an order to encourage all Spanish officers and soldiers participating in the attack. He also requested that the government promptly ensure the combat army’s supplies, including weapons and ammunition, medical supplies, and food, were all readily available.
After vigorously developing the West African Colony, Spain was not lacking in grain at all. Coupled with the developed domestic crop industry, vegetables, fruits, and beef and mutton had long been fully supplied to the army.
Under the original circumstances, the colonial army was supposed to be inferior and unable to enjoy such rich food supplies.
However, considering that the colonial army will go through many more wars, adequate food supplies are still very necessary.
Of course, the food and supplies for those ordinary indigenous soldiers were certainly several grades worse than those for the Spanish officers.
However, at least two meat meals a week can be satisfying, and even when supplies are abundant, three to four meat meals a week are possible.
Carlo, in high spirits, also issued orders to the other colonies, requesting them to prepare troops as quickly as possible and transport them to the Guinea Colony at the fastest speed, to be personally trained by Giuseppe.
As the Guinea Colony grows larger, the deployable army will become smaller.
After all, these newly occupied lands require troops to suppress them, and the current Guinea Colony lacks soldiers.
Capturing the Kingdom of Bam did not result in too many soldier losses, which is good news. However, in the short term, the Guinea Colony should also not have the ability to launch another war.
Firstly, weapons and ammunition supplies needed to be replenished from Spanish Mainland, and secondly, the available troops were insufficient. Moreover, with other indigenous nations on guard, achieving the same effect as attacking the Kingdom of Bam would be difficult.
Previously mentioned, the Kingdom of Bam was the last indigenous nation in the Cameroon region not occupied by Spain.
After occupying the Kingdom of Bam, according to the agreements reached at the Berlin Conference, Spain also needed a very reasonable justification to effectively occupy this region.
Actually, it’s also very simple: sign a treaty with all the local tribal chiefs, clearly defining Spain’s ruling position in this land.
This is something we can learn from the Germans. The Germans relied on military force to forcibly conquer the local indigenous tribes and then signed treaties with these tribes to solidify their colonial rule.
Regardless of whether these indigenous people could understand the treaty, as long as they signed their names and pressed their fingerprints, the treaty would be legal.
There’s no need to fear these indigenous people breaking their word, after all, if they can be made to submit once, they can be made to submit a second time.
107 The treaties signed were not intended to bind indigenous people; the real purpose was to prove their ruling position in this land to other European countries and prevent colonial competition from other nations.
As long as the tribal chiefs of the Spanish and Cameroon regions signed a treaty, even if the United Kingdom and Germany were powerful, they would not be able to interfere in this region.
After all, the Berlin Conference is still in negotiations. If the Germans were to break their existing agreement first, it would be self-defeating.
Not only would he lose face, but it would also instantly turn the Berlin Conference, painstakingly convened by Germany, into nothing. If Germany were the first to tear up the conference’s contents, other countries would also not abide by the agreements reached at the conference.
In order to make the agreements reached at the conference have a certain legal effect, Germany, as the initiating country of the conference, must first abide by the content of the conference.
Regarding the treaty, Carlo had long ago instructed Giuseppe that the Guinea Colony also had corresponding preparations.
After the complete conquest of the Kingdom of Bam, the Guinea Colony was already preparing for the signing of the treaty.
The bad news is that the Sultan of the Kingdom of Bam has died in the war. However, his son is still in Foumbam, and with the Sultan dead, the former Sultan’s son has effectively become the new Sultan.
Spain wanted to make him the Sultan, and no indigenous person dared to stand up in opposition. Including this newly appointed Sultan of Bam, the chiefs and sultans of the indigenous tribes, large and small, in the Cameroon region gathered together. With smiles on their faces, under the commemorative photograph taken by the camera, and beneath a Spanish document they couldn’t understand at all, they all signed their names and pressed their fingerprints.
The treaty had three copies in total. One copy would be kept in Foumbam, the capital of the Kingdom of Bam, one would be transferred to the Guinea Colony for preservation, and the other copy would be transported to the Spanish Mainland as proof of Spain’s control over this land.
After the treaty was signed, the Spanish government did not conceal anything and publicly announced this good news, as well as its colonial ruling position over the Cameroon region.
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