Commemorative medal of the Dahomey Expedition
The Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal (Médaille commémorative de l'Expédition du Dahomey) was a French campaign commemorative medal. It was bestowed to the participants of the First Franco-Dahomean War (1890) and of the Second Franco-Dahomean War (1892–1894) in order to commemorate their feats of arms. In 1892, France decided to send an expeditionary force of 1,801 Europeans and 1,769 natives under the command of Marine Infantry Colonel Alfred Dodds in response to the harassment of the kingdom of Porto-Novo under its protectorate and its trading posts on the coast of Dahomey by the troops of Behanzin, the king of Abomey.
Commemorative medal of the Dahomey Expedition
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- Name
- Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal
- Period
- 1892
- Region
- France
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Documentary summary
The Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal (Médaille commémorative de l'Expédition du Dahomey) was a French campaign commemorative medal. It was bestowed to the participants of the First Franco-Dahomean War (1890) and of the Second Franco-Dahomean War (1892–1894) in order to commemorate their feats of arms. In 1892, France decided to send an expeditionary force of 1,801 Europeans and 1,769 natives under the command of Marine Infantry Colonel Alfred Dodds in response to the harassment of the kingdom of Porto-Novo under its protectorate and its trading posts on the coast of Dahomey by the troops of Behanzin, the king of Abomey.
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In this article
Overview
Overview
The troops taking part in this expedition, which lasted five months, defeated the 12,000 warrior strong army (including the 2000 women strong Corps of amazons) of Behanzin at Dogba. France thus reconquered the kingdom of Dahomey (now the Republic of Benin) and placed at its head, Toffa as the king of Porto-Novo. King Behanzin was captured in 1893 and deported to Martinique then to Algiers where he died in 1906. The Law of 24 November 1892 instituted the Commemorative Medal of the Dahomey Expedition for award to the officers, sailors and soldiers who took part in this campaign.
Voorpagina van Le Petit Journa, l Général Dodds ontvangt op 27 mei 1893 de eerste Senegal-Medaille
Onbekende tekenaar in 1893
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal • Type — Campaign medal • Awarded For — Service in French Colonial Dahomean wars • Campaign — First Franco-Dahomean War Second Franco-Dahomean War • Established — 24 November 1892 • Firstawarded — 11 May 1893 • Lastawarded — 5 February 1894 • Caption2 — Ribbon bar of the Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal • Illustration — Reverse of the Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal • Illustration — Colonel Alfred-Amédée Dodds, a recipient of the Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal
Notable recipients (partial list)
Notable recipients (partial list)
• Colonel Alfred-Amédée Dodds • Captain Joseph Gaudérique Aymerich • Lieutenant Antoine Gramat
Chronology
Dated record
Chronology
The full dated record · 2 entries
1892
Commemorative medal of the Dahomey Expedition first recorded.
1892
Commemorative medal of the Dahomey Expedition is recorded from 1892.
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Places
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- France
Award description
The Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal was a 30 mm in diameter silver medal, its design was from Jean-Baptiste Daniel-Dupuis. The obverse of the medal features an effigy of the Republic and the words RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (English: FRENCH REPUBLIC) enclosed within a laurel wreath running along the entire circumference. In accordance with convention, the Republic is represented as a helmeted young woman with the word PATRIE (English: HOMELAND) inscribed on the visor of her helmet. The reverse of the medal featured, within the same laurel wreath as on the obverse, in the upper section, a small five pointed star amid protruding rays, at centre the relief inscription "DAHOMEY", in the lower section, a naval sea anchor over four flags. A small relief Cornucopia trademark is just off the tip of the leftmost flag. The medal hung from a 36 mm wide "daffodil yellow" silk moiré ribbon bearing four equidistant 4 mm black vertical stripes.
Award statute
The Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal was awarded by the President of France on propositions by the minister responsible for the service in which the recipient served. It was awarded to all officers, sailors and soldiers who served in the Dahomey campaigns. All recipients were to adhere to the code of conduct as set under the Grand chancellor of the Legion of honour. Posthumous awards were made to the widow or parents of the recipient. No request for the medal may be made fore service rendered after 5 February 1894. The crews of the following vessels of the French Navy were eligible for the award of the Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal: • AMBRE (1 January to 1 March 1894) • BRANDON (1 January to 12 February 1894) • ÉMERAUDE (1 January to 1 March 1894) • MARMET (1 January to 1 March 1894) • MÉSANGE (1 January to 1 March 1894) • ONYX (1 January to 1 March 1894) • OPALE (1 January to 1 March 1894) • SEGOND (1 January to 11 February 1894) • TOPAZE (1 January to 1 March 1894)
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.France phaléristique. Historical introduction to the Dahomey campaign.
- 2.Gallica. Article 4 of the Law of 24 November 1892.
- 3.France phaléristique. Decree of the President of the French Republic of 14 January 1893.
- 4.Gallica. Article 2 of the Law of 24 November 1892.
- 5.France phaléristique. Letter of the Minister for the Navy of the French Republic of 25 May 1894.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q3332253: Commemorative medal of the Dahomey ExpeditionWikidata
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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