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Manga Sewa encountered British explorer William Winwood Reade in 1869, when Reade set out north from Freetown with sixteen Africans and marched to Sewa's capital of Falaba . Presumably wary of allowing Europeans direct contact with West Africa 's interior, Sewa detained Reade for three months, warning of a war with neighboring Fulani .

In 1884 , Mandinka conqueror Samori Ture joined the king of Kaliere in attacking Solimana. After Samori's general N'fa Ali destroyed a number of surrounding villages, the Mandinka forces began a five-month siege of Falaba , Manga Sewa's capital.

As the city's residents grew desperate with hunger, Manga Sewa attempted to send his younger brother, Dugu to the Koranko for aid; however, Dugu was captured and executed within view of the city walls. Not long after, Manga Sewa gathered his family in the city's powder magazine and lit a torch, killing them and himself included. The resulting breach in Falaba's walls allowed Mandinka forces to penetrate the city, and it was soon assimilated into Samori's Wassoulou Empire .


REFERENCES

  • Hargreaves, J.D. "Winwood Reade and the Discovery of Africa." ''African Affairs'' 56.225 (Oct 1957): 306-316.



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