Dahomey also built underground chambers in Abomey which served varying functions including that of providing military installations for the army. These souterrains have been dated to the late 17th century. Wheeled vehicles are recorded to have been implemented in Dahomeyan warfare. In an operation against Abeokuta in 1864, Dahomey fielded three guns mounted on locally made carriages of which historian Robin Law adds that these weapons did not play an effective role in the battle. Some references exist about the possible production of guns and gunpowder in Dahomey. In 1880, king Béhanzin informed a French mission that firearms were manufactured in the state. Amid the war with France in 1892, a French expeditionary force discovered tools and resources such as cartridge cases, signal rockets and electric batteries which are necessary for making cartridges and repairing firearms.
Dahomey also built underground chambers in Abomey which served varying functions including that of providing military installations for the army. These souterrains have been dated to the late 17th century. Wheeled vehicles are recorded to have been implemented in Dahomeyan warfare. In an operation against Abeokuta in 1864, Dahomey fielded three guns mounted on locally made carriages of which historian Robin Law adds that these weapons did not play an effective role in the battle. Some references exi:st about the possible production of guns and gunpowder in Dahomey. In 1880, king Béhanzin informed a French mission that firearms were manufactured in the state. Amid the war with France in 1892, a French expeditionary force discovered tools and resources such as cartridge cases, signal rockets and electric batteries which are necessary for making cartridges and repairing firearms.