Paul Joalland

Who was Paul Joalland?

Paul-Jules Joalland is a French officer, known mainly for completing the Voulet-Chanoine Mission.

He was one of the six officers of the latter expedition, and was an artillery expert with the rank of lieutenant. The Voulet-Chanoine Mission was commanded by the captains Paul Voulet and Julien Chanoine, entrusted in 1898 by the government with the mission to explore and conquer the territories between the Niger River and Lake Chad, with the ultimate goal to unify, Jointly with other two similar expeditions, all French territories in West Africa.

The brutalities and massacres committed by the expedition after leaving Senegal brought the authorities to replace Voulet and Chanoine with Lieutenant Colonel Klobb; the latter was killed close to Zinder by Voulet on July 14, 1899, and shortly after Voulet and Chanoine were killed by their troops, that recognized as commander Joalland, who was promoted to the rank of Captain.

Joalland left Zinder on October 3, reaching, with 170 riflemen, Lake Chad; hearing later that the Foureau-Lamy Mission, advancing from the Sahara, was close, he went up the east side of the lake, and met it on February.