Togoville

11 FEBRUARY 2023

Lac Togo lies to the east of Togo and is part of the southern inland lagoon. I arrived here by shared taxi and got out at the village of Agbodrafo. From the road its a short walk to Hotel Le Lac where you can get boats to Togoville.

Togoville was the former seat of the Mlapa dynasty and Togo's historical centre of Voodoo. It is also a popular pilgrimage destination for Catholics visiting the church.

History
The town was originally called Togo meaning 'lake' in Ewe language. When the German named Gustav Nachtigal, came to the area in 1884, he signed a treaty with the local chief Mlapa III which led to the establishing of a German protectorate and the transfer of colonial power and privilege to the Germans. Gustav named the town Togostadt and declared it the capital of Togoland soon shortened to Togo. This was a friendly treaty and the relationship between the two nations is commemorated by a statue in the town. It shows two women; a German (on the left) and an African (on the right) standing on the back of a dove. Women were considered to have more disposition to humanity and unity.

During WW2, Togoland was invaded by the British and French forces. In 1922, the British received the League of Nations mandate to govern West Togo and France to govern East Togo which included Togostadt, hence why it was renamed Togoville. The French had a more uneasy relationships with the local people, mainly because the situation was forced upon them, whereas the relationships with the Germans had been negotiated. The statue outside the visitors centre is said to be one of an African elder having to take orders from a younger Frenchman. The local villagers use this statue as a point of discussion with their young people - demonstrating how to show respect to your elders.

Togoville Cathedral
The Germans built a large Presbytherian church in 1910. This was converted by the French to a catholic church and renamed Notre Dame Cathedral. The original bright colours and stained lass from the German church still remain today.
On the inside walls are pictures of African saints / martyrs who were killed or buried alive for converting to Catholicism.

In the 1970s, Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to a girl on the lake. This prompted the building of a shrine. In 1985, Pope Jean Paul II visited the town and held a service there. 2000 people attended and the site has since become a pilgrim destination for devote Catholics.

Voodoo religion
The majority of the people living in Togoville are initiated into the voodoo religious practices and follow this alongside their catholic worship. Around the town are numerous shrines and temples; including the shrine to Legba, the two Iroku trees dedicated to the rituals for twins and the various shrines outside peoples' houses. With a guide, I also visited the small fetish market which had the same range of objects, items and live and dead animal parts seen in the market in Lome.