5 - The reassertion of Sissibe integrity

Summary

Abdul Qadir's intrusion into Bundunke affairs galvanized those moderate forces which had steadily lost ground to the proponents of Islamic militancy in both Futa Toro and Bundu. The execution of Sega Gai was the beginning of an informal split between the Boulebane and Koussan branches of the Sissibe dynasty. While the division was never hard and fast, the Boulebane branch, during the ascendency of Abdul Qadir, assumed an anti-militant posture, whereas the Koussan branch represented reform interests. With the defeat of Abdul Qadir, reform ceased to be a viable option in Bundu. Subsequently, Boulebane tended to be associated with pro-French and pro-Kaarta sentiments; the latter connection would vacillate between amity and enmity, and would involve intermarriage between the royal families of Kaarta and Bundu. In contrast, Koussan was hostile to alliances with non-Muslim entities, and maintained a commercial orientation towards the politically non-threatening British along the Gambia. In the final analysis, however, Bundu's pragmatism and centralized character survived these differences until the advent and intervention of al-ḥᾱjj Umar in the middle of the nineteenth century. The split between the Sissibe was therefore not as powerful as the common threads linking the two.

The first third of the nineteenth century in Bundu is represented by a blend of endogenous, exogenous, and intermediate sources. Reports from the comptoirs are fairly substantial, so that details are more precise, and corroboration more extensive. However, the challenge of developing a clear understanding of the Bundunke perspective persists.