The Senegal Tribe Many students of African history wonder why the native people of Africa did not rise up in violent rebellion against their Imperialist conquerers. What many do not know though, is that some tribes did. One of these tribes was the nation that we now know as Senegal. In the 1800's, there was no Senegal but there was a nation that became Senegal much later. The tribe was ruled by Samori Toure when the Europeans started coming. Samori Toure signed an agreement with the French in an effort to keep the land they had owned for centuries. Unfortunately, the French broke the agreement and war broke out for 7 years. The people of Senegal were defeated in 1898.