They Were Defeated by The French in 1894
The women’s army consisted of huntresses, riflewomen, reapers, archers and gunners. But their weaponry was no match for the mighty armies of the English and French, who they lost to in the First Franco-Dahomean War in 1890, which saw major casualties among the Mino and they Second Franco-Dahomean War, which took place from 1892-1894, officially ended the kingdom. The legionnaires were impressed by the boldness of the women militia and later wrote about the “incredible courage and audacity.”
The troops were disbanded when the kingdom became a French colony. Oral tradition states that some surviving amazons secretly remained in Abomey afterwards, where they quietly assassinated a number of French officers. Other stories say the women pledged their services in protection of Agoli-Agbo, the 12th and final king of Dahomey, disguising themselves as his wives in order to guard him.
