1781-1885 History of Central Africa 1918-1939





Stamps issued by Spain's postal service for Annobon, Elobey and Corrisco, 1903, featuring young King Alfonso XIII.


Spanish Guinea, 1885-1918



The BERLIN CONFERENCE of 1884-1885 dealt with the partition of Africa. Spain claimed the hinterland of Rio Muni as far as the Ubangi river (1886); yet France did not recognize Spain's claim on the mainland at all, until France and Spain signed an agreement in 1900 delimiting Rio Muni to its present borders. The Spanish possessions in the Guinea region were treated as 3 separate administrative units - FERNANDO POO ; ANNOBON, ELOBEY & CORRISCO and RIO MUNI. In 1899 the Spanish overseas ministry was abolished, and Spanish Guinea was placed directly under the Spanish cabinet chief. In 1909 they were combined to form Spanish Guinea.
In 1898 there was a Bubi insurrection, a second one in 1910. In 1913 a radio-telegraph station was taken into service. Spanish Guinea's plantation industry (cocoa) had a constant demand of labour. In order to recruit workers, governor Barrera undertook expeditions to mainland Rio Muni; in 1914 he concluded a treaty with Liberia in order to recruit Liberian plantation workers.
During World War I, Spain remained formally neutral. When the German forces could no longer defend Kamerun due to lack of ammunition, c. 60,000 men lead by Governor Ebermaier crossed into Rio Muni, where they were disarmed and interned. Spanish Guinea's governor during the war years, ANGEL BARRERA Y LUYANDO (1910-1918) was regarded pro-German; he is said to have assisted in contraband arms supply to the German troops defending Kamerun.






EXTERNAL
FILES 		Equatorial Guinea, History of, from Infoplease
Entries Elobey, Annobon & Corrisco, Spanish Guinea, Rio Muni, Fernando Po, from Sandafayre Stamp Atlas
DOCUMENTS Map of 1890, from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Am. ed. 1890, posted by Perry Castaneda Library, UTexas, lists Fernando Poo as Spanish, but indicates Rio Muni territory as French
Africa map of 1892 from Gardiner's Atlas of English History, 1892
German Map (1911-1916) featuring Span. Guinea, posted by Jaduland
REFERENCE Max Liniger-Goumaz, Historical Dictionary of Equatorial Guinea, Metuchen : Scarecrow 1988, 238 pp.
Article : Spain : Colonies, in : Statesman's Yearbook 1895 pp.959-962, 1898 pp.959-962, 1901 p.1060, 1905 p.1159, 1910 pp.1229-1230 [G]



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First posted in 2001, last revised on April 8th 2007

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