How did World War I change the colonial control of Togo and Cameroon?
During World War I, the German colonies of Togo and Cameroon were conquered by Allied forces and subsequently partitioned between Britain and France under the League of Nations mandate system.123
Togo
In August 1914, British and French troops invaded Togoland, securing a German surrender within weeks. By 1922, the territory was formally divided:14
* French Togoland: France received approximately two-thirds of the territory, including the capital, Lomé, and the railway system.15
* British Togoland: The remaining western portion was administered by Britain alongside the Gold Coast. This area eventually became part of independent Ghana in 1957, while French Togoland gained independence as the Republic of Togo in 1960.165
Cameroon
Allied forces drove German authorities out of Cameroon by 1916. The territory was similarly split:7
* French Cameroun: France administered the majority of the territory, integrating it into the administrative structure of French Equatorial Africa.73
* British Cameroons: Britain received two smaller strips of land along the border of Nigeria, which it administered as part of that colony. Following independence, the northern part joined Nigeria, while the southern part federated with the former French Cameroun.73