a comic book e book delves into the epic of the one queen of Dahomey | EUROtoday

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Lhe amazons: robust and highly effective ladies who go into battle and win victories… Beyond Greek mythology, they existed. In Antiquity, from the shores of the Black Sea to the borders of China and Mongolia. In Africa too, in Dahomey (present-day Benin). A comic book strip celebrates the lifetime of “Tassi Hangbé, the Amazon queen of Danxomè*”. Nathalie Sagbo, screenwriter of this album, wished to spotlight a historic determine from Benin, who is simply too little identified. Tassi Hangbé is the one girl who was queen of this nation. During her reign which lasted solely three years, she created a military of warriors, the Agoodjie, the Amazons of Dahomey. “A little over five years ago, I heard about this queen of Danxomè. His story immediately interested me and I wanted to know more. I met different people and ended up meeting Gabin Djimassé, historian and researcher, in Abomey. » The latter told him, in detail, the story of the queen.

The only queen of the kingdom of Danxomé

Tassi Hangbé, daughter of King Houegbadja, is the twin sister of the man who will become King Akaba. “She was raised exactly like her twin brother, learned to use weapons and fight. She was not raised as a little girl, but really as a boy. Then, she had a family life, had children. However, attached to her kingdom, she did not hesitate to go and live in the palace with her brother, who had become king, when he called on her, explains the author. With him, she went to war. Unfortunately, the king dies during a fight. She then decides to disguise herself and take his place to lead his army to victory. Returning to the kingdom, she established herself as queen regent, while waiting for Akaba’s son to come of age, despite the strong reluctance of a male royal court. » From 1708 to 1711, she reigned over Danxomè.

More than a heroine, an inspiring myth

By taking the story of this African heroine to transmit it to a wide audience through a comic strip, Nathalie Sagbo has embarked on a long journey. The whole process takes time. Once the script was written, she started looking for a designer. With Gilchrist Domingo, she first started working remotely, he in Lomé, she in Cotonou. “I didn’t find it very conclusive. So, he stayed with me in residence for about two years, the time to create the comic strip,” she explains. “It’s really a very long-term job. I would have to write a book to tell the story of the genesis of the comic strip,” she provides with a smile. For the preface to this work, the creator solely thought-about one individual. “I wanted to have a Beninese woman who was strong, inspiring and also known internationally. Often, singer Angélique Kidjo is portrayed as a modern-day amazon. I couldn’t imagine a better preface,” relishes Nathalie Sagbo. Even if she does not know her, she’s going to contact her through her manufacturing firm and after lengthy exchanges of emails, one morning, she receives the preface written by Angélique Kidjo. The complete course of was lengthy. But like her heroine, the creator is tenacious and persevering.

It was marked by the willpower and pure management of Tassi Hangbé. “When I heard about the Queen’s victory and especially about her life, her childhood, her life as a woman and the battles she fought, three fundamental values ​​immediately emerged: courage, resilience and self-sacrifice, she lists. Self-sacrifice, because she did not hesitate to sacrifice her family life to reign. Courage, because when her twin brother, King Akaba died during a battle, she did not hesitate to disguise herself and take the lead of the army and above all to lead it to victory. And finally, resilience. Despite all the obstacles she faced throughout her life, she never gave up, she always persevered and moved forward. It was these values ​​that I wanted to convey. »

By choosing the comic strip format, the author opens up a wide audience, from 7 to 77 years old, with one objective: to make the story of this queen known to everyone, children and the whole family. “I have a 10-year-old daughter and I can see that the characters in the comics are very far from home. I found it interesting to have a Beninese, African heroine, an inspiring woman, with whom she could identify,” she provides.

The Agodjié, these amazons of Dahomey

The story of this queen highlights the central place of ladies in historical past, too typically forgotten, in Africa, as on the planet. Not solely did she increase and prepare a military of Amazons, however she additionally modified society. Under his reign, ladies had entry to new professions, reminiscent of pottery, weaving or ironwork, thus selling their emancipation.

In the preface, Angélique Kidjo salutes the decisive work of Nathalie Sagbo: “It is essential to return to our past, which will allow us to understand our current culture of which we are unfortunately not proud enough. » The singer also highlights a famous African proverb: “As long as the story of the hunt is told by the hunter, the lion will always be defeated. »

The story doesn’t end there. Nathalie Sagbo is now working on a cartoon. “Another form, another way of making the story of Queen Tassi Hangbé known, always in a fun way,” she rejoices. Translations of the comedian into English and Portuguese are additionally deliberate. At the identical time, the creator additionally launched an associative platform Cœur des amazons with the goal of serving to little women and supporting ladies of their entrepreneurial tasks. “The spirit is to make them realize that they can do anything. »

Asked if Benin can today be led by a woman, she observes that for two years, the country has had a vice-president, Mariam Chabi Talata. “If a woman is already vice-president, there is only a small step to take,” she rejoices.


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Answer



* Danxomè: the dominion of Dahomey could be written in several methods: Danxomè, Danhomè and even d’Abomey.

Tassi Hangbé, the Amazon queen of Danxomèby Nathalie Sagbo (Éditions H Diffusion, 65 p., €19).

https://www.lepoint.fr/afrique/tassi-hangbe-une-bande-dessinee-plonge-dans-l-epopee-de-la-seule-reine-du-dahomey-03-01-2025-2579166_3826.php