Joseph Atemengue was an Ewondo headman and court leader during the French colonial period in Cameroon.
After the defeat of Germany in World War I, France gained control of Ewondo lands in Cameroon.
They did not trust the German-appointed paramount chief of the Ewondo and Bane peoples, Charles Atangana, due to his history of loyalty to the Germans.
They instead appointed the headman Joseph Atemengue as their chief agent in the Yaoundé region.
From his post in Dschang, Atangana attempted to secure an alliance with Atemengue by sending his 20-year-old daughter, Katerina, to marry the new leader.