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mena7
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Kushite Empire 700 BC

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Kushite Empire

Kingdom of Kush

The Kingdom of Kush was probably created in 5900 BC according to the Egyptian long chronology and lasted until 350 CE. I think the Egyptian empire and Kushite empire were bigger then the one depicted in Western history books. I think at some time the Egyptian and Kushite empires covered Africa all the way down to Kenya, North Africa all the way to Morocco, West Asia all the way to Irak and Southern Europe area like Greece, Dalmatia, Italy and Spain.


Kingdom of Kush

The Kingdom of Kush or Kush was an ancient African kingdom situated on the confluences of the Blue Nile, White Nile and River Atbara in what is now the Republic of Sudan.

Established after the Bronze Age collapse and the disintegration of the New Kingdom of Egypt, it was centered at Napata in its early phase. After king Kashta ("the Kushite") invaded Egypt in the 8th century BC, the Kushite kings ruled as Pharaohs of the Twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt for a century, until they were expelled by Psamtik I in 656 BC.

During Classical Antiquity, the Kushite imperial capital was at Meroe. In early Greek geography, the Meroitic kingdom was known as Ethiopia. The Kushite kingdom with its capital at Meroe persisted until the 4th century AD, when it weakened and disintegrated due to internal rebellion.

By the 1st century AD, the Kushite capital had been captured by the Beja Dynasty, who tried to revive the empire. The Kushite capital was eventually captured and burnt to the ground by the Kingdom of Axum.
 
mena7
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Ancient Egypt Empire

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Ancient Egypt

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Ancent Egypt temple map

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Ancient Egypt and Persia

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Ancient Egypt map 1595

Mena: According to the long chronology the Dynastic Egyptian civilization started in 5300 BC .The Egyptian Sirius calendar was created in 4500 BC. The Egyptian Priests knew the 25,000 years old great year cycle, they saw the sun rise were it set and set were it rise. Water erosion on the sphinx show the sphinx is 10,000 years old.

Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations globally to arise independently. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology)[1] with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh.[2] The history of ancient Egypt occurred in a series of stable Kingdoms, separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods: the Old Kingdom of the Early Bronze Age, the Middle Kingdom of the Middle Bronze Age and the New Kingdom of the Late Bronze Age.

Egypt reached the pinnacle of its power during the New Kingdom, in the Ramesside period where it rivalled the Hittite Empire, Assyrian Empire and Mitanni Empire, after which it entered a period of slow decline. Egypt was invaded or conquered by a succession of foreign powers (such as the Canaanites/Hyksos, Libyans, Nubians, Assyria, Babylonia, Achaemenids and Macedonian Greece) in the Third Intermediate Period of Egypt and Late Period. In the aftermath of Alexander the Great's death, one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter, established himself as the new ruler of Egypt. This Greek Ptolemaic Dynasty ruled Egypt until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province.[3]

The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley. The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. With resources to spare, the administration sponsored mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military intended to defeat foreign enemies and assert Egyptian dominance. Motivating and organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of a pharaoh, who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people in the context of an elaborate system of religious beliefs.[4][5]

The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians include the quarrying, surveying and construction techniques that supported the building of monumental pyramids, temples, and obelisks; a system of mathematics, a practical and effective system of medicine, irrigation systems and agricultural production techniques, the first known ships,[6] Egyptian faience and glass technology, new forms of literature, and the earliest known peace treaty, made with Hittites.[7] Egypt left a lasting legacy. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far corners of the world. Its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for centuries. A new-found respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern period by Europeans and Egyptians led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its cultural legacy.[8]

Predynastic period

Main article: Predynastic Egypt





A typical Naqada II jar decorated with gazelles. (Predynastic Period)
In Predynastic and Early Dynastic times, the Egyptian climate was much less arid than it is today. Large regions of Egypt were covered in treed savanna and traversed by herds of grazing ungulates. Foliage and fauna were far more prolific in all environs and the Nile region supported large populations of waterfowl. Hunting would have been common for Egyptians, and this is also the period when many animals were first domesticated.[11]

By about 5500 BC, small tribes living in the Nile valley had developed into a series of cultures demonstrating firm control of agriculture and animal husbandry, and identifiable by their pottery and personal items, such as combs, bracelets, and beads. The largest of these early cultures in upper (Southern) Egypt was the Badari, which probably originated in the Western Desert; it was known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools, and its use of copper.[12]

The Badari was followed by the Amratian (Naqada I) and Gerzeh (Naqada II) cultures,[13] which brought a number of technological improvements. As early as the Naqada I Period, predynastic Egyptians imported obsidian from Ethiopia, used to shape blades and other objects from flakes.[14] In Naqada II times, early evidence exists of contact with the Near East, particularly Canaan and the Byblos coast.[15] Over a period of about 1,000 years, the Naqada culture developed from a few small farming communities into a powerful civilization whose leaders were in complete control of the people and resources of the Nile valley.[16] Establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada III leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile.[17] They also traded with Nubia to the south, the oases of the western desert to the west, and the cultures of the eastern Mediterranean and Near East to the east.[17] Royal Nubian burials at Qustul produced artifacts bearing the oldest-known examples of Egyptian dynastic symbols, such as the white crown of Egypt and falcon.[18][19]

The Naqada culture manufactured a diverse selection of material goods, reflective of the increasing power and wealth of the elite, as well as societal personal-use items, which included combs, small statuary, painted pottery, high quality decorative stone vases, cosmetic palettes, and jewelry made of gold, lapis, and ivory. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used well into the Roman Period to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines.[20] During the last predynastic phase, the Naqada culture began using written symbols that eventually were developed into a full system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language.[21]

Early Dynastic Period (c. 3050 –2686 BC)

Main article: Early Dynastic Period of Egypt

The Early Dynastic Period was approximately contemporary to the early Sumerian-Akkadian civilisation of Mesopotamia and of ancient Elam. The third-century BC Egyptian priest Manetho grouped the long line of pharaohs from Menes to his own time into 30 dynasties, a system still used today.[22] He chose to begin his official history with the king named "Meni" (or Menes in Greek) who was believed to have united the two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt (around 3100 BC).[23]

The transition to a unified state happened more gradually than ancient Egyptian writers represented, and there is no contemporary record of Menes. Some scholars now believe, however, that the mythical Menes may have been the pharaoh Narmer, who is depicted wearing royal regalia on the ceremonial Narmer Palette, in a symbolic act of unification.[24] In the Early Dynastic Period about 3150 BC, the first of the Dynastic pharaohs solidified control over lower Egypt by establishing a capital at Memphis, from which he could control the labour force and agriculture of the fertile delta region, as well as the lucrative and critical trade routes to the Levant. The increasing power and wealth of the pharaohs during the early dynastic period was reflected in their elaborate mastaba tombs and mortuary cult structures at Abydos, which were used to celebrate the deified pharaoh after his death.[25] The strong institution of kingship developed by the pharaohs served to legitimize state control over the land, labour, and resources that were essential to the survival and growth of ancient Egyptian civilization.[26]





The Narmer Palette depicts the unification of the Two Lands.[27]
Old Kingdom (2686–2181 BC)

Main article: Old Kingdom





The Giza Pyramids
Major advances in architecture, art, and technology were made during the Old Kingdom, fueled by the increased agricultural productivity and resulting population, made possible by a well-developed central administration.[28] Some of ancient Egypt's crowning achievements, the Giza pyramids and Great Sphinx, were constructed during the Old Kingdom. Under the direction of the vizier, state officials collected taxes, coordinated irrigation projects to improve crop yield, drafted peasants to work on construction projects, and established a justice system to maintain peace and order.[29]





Khafre Enthroned
Along with the rising importance of a central administration arose a new class of educated scribes and officials who were granted estates by the pharaoh in payment for their services. Pharaohs also made land grants to their mortuary cults and local temples, to ensure that these institutions had the resources to worship the pharaoh after his death. Scholars believe that five centuries of these practices slowly eroded the economic power of the pharaoh, and that the economy could no longer afford to support a large centralized administration.[30] As the power of the pharaoh diminished, regional governors called nomarchs began to challenge the supremacy of the pharaoh. This, coupled with severe droughts between 2200 and 2150 BC,[31] is assumed to have caused the country to enter the 140-year period of famine and strife known as the First Intermediate Period.[32]

First Intermediate Period (2181–1991 BC)

Main article: First Intermediate Period of Egypt

After Egypt's central government collapsed at the end of the Old Kingdom, the administration could no longer support or stabilize the country's economy. Regional governors could not rely on the king for help in times of crisis, and the ensuing food shortages and political disputes escalated into famines and small-scale civil wars. Yet despite difficult problems, local leaders, owing no tribute to the pharaoh, used their new-found independence to establish a thriving culture in the provinces. Once in control of their own resources, the provinces became economically richer—which was demonstrated by larger and better burials among all social classes.[33] In bursts of creativity, provincial artisans adopted and adapted cultural motifs formerly restricted to the royalty of the Old Kingdom, and scribes developed literary styles that expressed the optimism and originality of the period.[34]

Free from their loyalties to the pharaoh, local rulers began competing with each other for territorial control and political power. By 2160 BC, rulers in Herakleopolis controlled Lower Egypt in the north, while a rival clan based in Thebes, the Intef family, took control of Upper Egypt in the south. As the Intefs grew in power and expanded their control northward, a clash between the two rival dynasties became inevitable. Around 2055 BC the northern Theban forces under Nebhepetre Mentuhotep II finally defeated the Herakleopolitan rulers, reuniting the Two Lands. They inaugurated a period of economic and cultural renaissance known as the Middle Kingdom.[35]

Middle Kingdom (2134–1690 BC)

Main article: Middle Kingdom of Egypt





Amenemhat III, the last great ruler of the Middle Kingdom
The pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom restored the country's prosperity and stability, thereby stimulating a resurgence of art, literature, and monumental building projects.[36] Mentuhotep II and his Eleventh Dynasty successors ruled from Thebes, but the vizier Amenemhat I, upon assuming kingship at the beginning of the Twelfth Dynasty around 1985 BC, shifted the nation's capital to the city of Itjtawy, located in Faiyum.[37] From Itjtawy, the pharaohs of the Twelfth Dynasty undertook a far-sighted land reclamation and irrigation scheme to increase agricultural output in the region. Moreover, the military reconquered territory in Nubia that was rich in quarries and gold mines, while laborers built a defensive structure in the Eastern Delta, called the "Walls-of-the-Ruler", to defend against foreign attack.[38]

With the pharaohs' having secured military and political security and vast agricultural and mineral wealth, the nation's population, arts, and religion flourished. In contrast to elitist Old Kingdom attitudes towards the gods, the Middle Kingdom experienced an increase in expressions of personal piety and what could be called a democratization of the afterlife, in which all people possessed a soul and could be welcomed into the company of the gods after death.[39] Middle Kingdom literature featured sophisticated themes and characters written in a confident, eloquent style.[34] The relief and portrait sculpture of the period captured subtle, individual details that reached new heights of technical perfection.[40]

The last great ruler of the Middle Kingdom, Amenemhat III, allowed Semitic-speaking Canaanite settlers from the Near East into the delta region to provide a sufficient labour force for his especially active mining and building campaigns. These ambitious building and mining activities, however, combined with severe Nile floods later in his reign, strained the economy and precipitated the slow decline into the Second Intermediate Period during the later Thirteenth and Fourteenth dynasties. During this decline, the Canaanite settlers began to seize control of the delta region, eventually coming to power in Egypt as the Hyksos.[41]

Second Intermediate Period (1674–1549 BC) and the Hyksos

Main article: Second Intermediate Period of Egypt

Around 1785 BC, as the power of the Middle Kingdom pharaohs weakened, a Semitic Canaanite people called the Hyksos had already settled in the Eastern Delta town of Avaris, seized control of Egypt, and forced the central government to retreat to Thebes. The pharaoh was treated as a vassal and expected to pay tribute.[42] The Hyksos ("foreign rulers") retained Egyptian models of government and identified as pharaohs, thus integrating Egyptian elements into their culture. They and other Semitic invaders introduced new tools of warfare into Egypt, most notably the composite bow and the horse-drawn chariot.[43]

After their retreat, the native Theban kings found themselves trapped between the Canaanite Hyksos ruling the north and the Hyksos' Nubian allies, the Kushites, to the south of Egypt. After years of vassalage, Thebes gathered enough strength to challenge the Hyksos in a conflict that lasted more than 30 years, until 1555 BC [42] The pharaohs Seqenenre Tao II and Kamose were ultimately able to defeat the Nubians to the south of Egypt, but failed to defeat the Hyksos. That task fell to Kamose's successor, Ahmose I, who successfully waged a series of campaigns that permanently eradicated the Hyksos' presence in Egypt. He established a new dynasty. In the New Kingdom that followed, the military became a central priority for the pharaohs seeking to expand Egypt's borders and attempting to gain mastery of the Near East.[44]





The maximum territorial extent of ancient Egypt (15th century BC)
New Kingdom (1549–1069 BC)

Main article: New Kingdom

The New Kingdom pharaohs established a period of unprecedented prosperity by securing their borders and strengthening diplomatic ties with their neighbours, including the Mitanni Empire, Assyria, and Canaan. Military campaigns waged under Tuthmosis I and his grandson Tuthmosis III extended the influence of the pharaohs to the largest empire Egypt had ever seen. Between their reigns, Hatshepsut generally promoted peace and restored trade routes lost during the Hyksos occupation, as well as expanding to new regions. When Tuthmosis III died in 1425 BC, Egypt had an empire extending from Niya in north west Syria to the fourth waterfall of the Nile in Nubia, cementing loyalties and opening access to critical imports such as bronze and wood.[45]





Djeser-Djeseru is the main building of Hatshepsut's mortuary temple complex at Deir el-Bahri, the building is an example of perfect symmetry that predates the Parthenon by a thousand years
The New Kingdom pharaohs began a large-scale building campaign to promote the god Amun, whose growing cult was based in Karnak. They also constructed monuments to glorify their own achievements, both real and imagined. The pharaoh Hatshepsut used such hyperbole and grandeur during her reign of almost twenty-two years.[46] Her reign was very successful, marked by an extended period of peace and wealth-building, trading expeditions to Punt, restoration of foreign trade networks, and great building projects, including an elegant mortuary temple that rivaled the Greek architecture of a thousand years later, a colossal pair of obelisks, and a chapel at Karnak. Despite her achievements, Amenhotep II, the heir to Hatshepsut's nephew-stepson Tuthmosis III, sought to erase her legacy near the end of his father's reign and throughout his, touting many of her accomplishments as his.[47] He also tried to change many established traditions that had developed over the centuries, which some suggest was a futile attempt to prevent other women from becoming pharaoh and to curb their influence in the kingdom.

Around 1350 BC, the stability of the New Kingdom seemed threatened further when Amenhotep IV ascended the throne and instituted a series of radical and chaotic reforms. Changing his name to Akhenaten, he touted the previously obscure sun deity Aten as the supreme deity, suppressed the worship of most other deities, and attacked the power of the temple that had become dominated by the priests of Amun in Thebes, whom he saw as corrupt.[48] Moving the capital to the new city of Akhetaten (modern-day Amarna), Akhenaten turned a deaf ear to events in the Near East (where the Hittites, Mitanni, and Assyrians were vying for control). He was devoted to his new religion and artistic style. After his death, the cult of the Aten was quickly abandoned, the priests of Amun soon regained power and returned the capital to Thebes. Under their influence the subsequent pharaohs Tutankhamun, Ay, and Horemheb worked to erase all mention of Akhenaten's heresy, now known as the Amarna Period.[49]





Four colossal statues of Ramesses II flank the entrance of his temple Abu Simbel
Around 1279 BC, Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great, ascended the throne, and went on to build more temples, erect more statues and obelisks, and sire more children than any other pharaoh in history.[50] A bold military leader, Ramesses II led his army against the Hittites in the Battle of Kadesh (in modern Syria) and, after fighting to a stalemate, finally agreed to the first recorded peace treaty, around 1258 BC.[51] With both the Egyptians and Hittite Empire proving unable to gain the upper hand over one another, and both powers also fearful of the expanding Middle Assyrian Empire, Egypt withdraw from much of the Near East. The Hittites were thus left to compete unsuccessfully with the powerful Assyrians and the newly arrived Phrygians.

Egypt's wealth, however, made it a tempting target for invasion, particularly by the Libyan Berbers to the west, and the Sea Peoples, a powerful confederation of largely Greek, Luwian and Phoenician/Caananite pirates from the Aegean. Initially, the military was able to repel these invasions, but Egypt eventually lost control of its remaining territories in southern Caanan, much of it falling to the Assyrians. The effects of external threats were exacerbated by internal problems such as corruption, tomb robbery, and civil unrest. After regaining their power, the high priests at the temple of Amun in Thebes accumulated vast tracts of land and wealth, and their expanded power splintered the country during the Third Intermediate Period.[52]

Third Intermediate Period (1069–653 BC)

Main article: Third Intermediate Period of Egypt

Following the death of Ramesses XI in 1078 BC, Smendes assumed authority over the northern part of Egypt, ruling from the city of Tanis. The south was effectively controlled by the High Priests of Amun at Thebes, who recognized Smendes in name only.[53] During this time, Berber tribes from what was later to be called Libya had been settling in the western delta, and the chieftains of these settlers began increasing their autonomy. Libyan princes took control of the delta under Shoshenq I in 945 BC, founding the so-called Libyan Berber, or Bubastite, dynasty that ruled for some 200 years. Shoshenq also gained control of southern Egypt by placing his family members in important priestly positions.

In the mid-ninth century BC, Egypt made a failed attempt to once more gain a foothold in Western Asia. Osorkon II of Egypt, along with a large alliance of nations and peoples, including; Israel, Hamath, Phoenicia/Caanan, the Arabs, Arameans, and neo Hittites among others, engaged in the Battle of Karkar against the powerful Assyrian king Shalmaneser III in 853 BC. However, this coalition of powers failed and the Assyrian Empire continued to dominate Western Asia.

Libyan Berber control began to erode as a rival native dynasty in the delta arose under Leontopolis. Also, the Nubians of the Kushites threatened Egypt from the lands to the south.[54]





Around 730 BC Libyans from the west fractured the political unity of the country
Drawing on millennia of interaction (trade, acculturation, occupation, assimilation, and war[55]) with Egypt,[56] the Kushite king Piye left his Nubian capital of Napata and invaded Egypt around 727 BC. Piye easily seized control of Thebes and eventually the Nile Delta.[57] He recorded the episode on his stela of victory. Piye set the stage for subsequent Twenty-fifth dynasty pharaohs,[58] such as Taharqa, to reunite the "Two lands" of Northern and Southern Egypt. The Nile valley empire was as large as it had been since the New Kingdom.

The Twenty-fifth dynasty ushered in a renaissance period for ancient Egypt.[59] Religion, the arts, and architecture were restored to their glorious Old, Middle, and New Kingdom forms. Pharaohs, such as Taharqa, built or restored temples and monuments throughout the Nile valley, including at Memphis, Karnak, Kawa, Jebel Barkal, etc.[60] It was during the Twenty-fifth dynasty that there was the first widespread construction of pyramids (many in modern Sudan) in the Nile Valley since the Middle Kingdom.[61][62][63]

Piye made various unsuccessful attempts to extend Egyptian influence in the Near East, then controlled by Assyria. In 720 BC, he sent an army in support a rebellion against Assyria, which was taking place in Philistia and Gaza. However, Piye was defeated by Sargon II and the rebellion failed. In 711 BC, Piye again supported a revolt against the Assyrians by the Israelites of Ashdod and was once again defeated by the Assyrian king Sargon II. Subsequently, Piye was forced from the Near East.[64]

From the 10th century BC onwards, Assyria fought for control of the southern Levant. Frequently, cities and kingdoms of the southern Levant appealed to Egypt for aide in their struggles against the powerful Assyrian army. Taharqa enjoyed some initial success in his attempts to regain a foothold in the Near East. Taharqa aided the Judean King Hezekiah when Hezekiah and Jerusalem was besieged by the Assyrian king, Sennacherib (2 Kings 19:9; Isaiah 37:9). Scholars disagree on the primary reason for Assyria's abandonment of their siege on Jerusalem. Reasons for the Assyrian withdrawal range from conflict with the Egyptian/Kushite army to divine intervention to surrender to disease.[65] Henry Aubin argues that the Kushite/Egyptian army saved Jerusalem from the Assyrians and prevented the Assyrians from returning to capture Jerusalem for the remainder of Sennacherib's life (20 years).[66] Some argue that disease was the primary reason for failing to actually take the city and Senacherib's annals claim Judah was forced into tribute regardless.[67]

The Assyrians began their invasion of Egypt under king Esarhaddon, successor of Sennacherib. Sennacherib had been murdered by his own sons for destroying the rebellious city of Babylon. In 674 BC, Taharqa defeated Esarhaddon and the Assyrian army outright on Egyptian soil.[68] In 671 BC, Esarhaddon drove the Kushites from Northern Egypt and back to their Nubian homeland. However, the native Egyptian rulers installed by Esarhaddon were unable to retain full control of the whole country for long. Two years later, Taharqa returned from Nubia and seized control of a section of southern Egypt as far north as Memphis. Esarhaddon prepared to return to Egypt and once more eject Taharqa, however he fell ill and died in his capital, Nineveh, before he left Assyria. His successor, Ashurbanipal, sent a general with a small, but well trained army, which defeated Taharqa at Memphis and once more drove him from Egypt. Taharqa died in Nubia two years later.

His successor, Tanutamun, also made a failed attempt to regain Egypt for Nubia. He successfully defeated Necho, the puppet ruler installed by Ashurbanipal, taking Thebes in the process. The Assyrians then sent a large army southwards. Tantamani (Tanutamun) was heavily routed and fled back to Nubia. The Assyrian army sacked Thebes to such an extent it never truly recovered. A native ruler, Psammetichus I was placed on the throne, as a vassal of Ashurbanipal, and the Nubians were never again to pose a threat.[69]





Twenty-fifth Dynasty
Late Period (672–332 BC)

Main articles: Late Period of ancient Egypt and History of Achaemenid Egypt

With no permanent plans for conquest, the Assyrians left control of Egypt to a series of vassals who became known as the Saite kings of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty. By 653 BC, the Saite king Psamtik I (taking advantage of the fact that Assyria was involved in a fierce war conquering Elam and that few Assyrian troops were stationed in Egypt) was able to free Egypt relatively peacefully from Assyrian vassalage with the help of Lydian and Greek mercenaries, the latter of whom were recruited to form Egypt's first navy. Psamtik and his successors however were careful to maintain peaceful relations with Assyria. Greek influence expanded greatly as the city of Naukratis became the home of Greeks in the delta.

In 609 BC Necho II went to war with Babylonia, the Chaldeans, the Medians and the Scythians in an attempt to save Assyria, which after a brutal civil war was being ovverrun by this coalition of powers. However, the attempt to save Egypts former masters failed. The Egyptians delayed intervening too long, and Nineveh had already fallen and King Sin-shar-ishkun was dead by the time Necho II sent his armies northwards. However Necho easily brushed aside the Israelite army under King Josiah but he and the Assyrians then lost a battle at Harran to the Babylonians, Medes and Scythians. Necho II and Ashur-uballit II of Assyria were finally defeated at Carchemish in Aramea (modern Syria) in 605 BC. The Egyptians remained in the area for some decades, struggling with the Babylonian kings Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II for control of portions of the former Assyrian Empire in The Levant. However, they were eventually driven back into Egypt, and Nebuchadnezzar II even briefly invaded Egypt itself in 567 BC.[67] The Saite kings based in the new capital of Sais witnessed a brief but spirited resurgence in the economy and culture, but in 525 BC, the powerful Persians, led by Cambyses II, began their conquest of Egypt, eventually capturing the pharaoh Psamtik III at the battle of Pelusium. Cambyses II then assumed the formal title of pharaoh, but ruled Egypt from his home of Susa in Persia (modern Iran), leaving Egypt under the control of a satrapy. A few temporarily successful revolts against the Persians marked the fifth century BC, but Egypt was never able to permanently overthrow the Persians.[70]

Following its annexation by Persia, Egypt was joined with Cyprus and Phoenicia (modern Lebanon) in the sixth satrapy of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. This first period of Persian rule over Egypt, also known as the Twenty-seventh dynasty, ended in 402 BC, and from 380–343 BC the Thirtieth Dynasty ruled as the last native royal house of dynastic Egypt, which ended with the kingship of Nectanebo II. A brief restoration of Persian rule, sometimes known as the Thirty-first Dynasty, began in 343 BC, but shortly after, in 332 BC, the Persian ruler Mazaces handed Egypt over to the Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great without a fight.[71
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Carthaginian Empire

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Carthaginian Empire

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Carthaginian Empire

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City of Carthage

Ancient Carthage (from Phoenician 𐤒𐤓𐤕 𐤇𐤃𐤔𐤕 Qart-ḥadašt[1]) was a Semitic civilization[2] centered on the Phoenician city-state of Carthage, located in North Africa on the Gulf of Tunis, outside what is now Tunis, Tunisia. It was founded in 814 BCE.[3][4] Originally a dependency of the Phoenician state of Tyre, Carthage gained independence around 650 BCE and established a hegemony over other Phoenician settlements throughout the Mediterranean, North Africa and what is now Spain[5] which lasted until the end of the 3rd century BCE. At the height of the city's prominence, it was a major hub of trade with political influence extending over most of the western Mediterranean.

For much of its history, Carthage was in a constant state of struggle with the Greeks on Sicily and the Roman Republic, which led to a series of armed conflicts known as the Greek-Punic Wars and Punic Wars. The city also had to deal with the potentially hostile Berbers,[6] the indigenous inhabitants of the entire area where Carthage was built. In 146 BCE, after the third and final Punic War, Carthage was destroyed and then occupied by Roman forces.[7] Nearly all of the other Phoenician city-states and former Carthaginian dependencies fell into Roman hands from then on

Carthage (/ˈkɑrθɪdʒ/; Arabic: قرطاج‎ Qarṭāj, Berber: ⴽⴰⵔⵜⴰⵊⴻⵏ Kartajen) is a suburb of Tunis, Tunisia that was the centre of the Carthaginian Empire in antiquity. The city has existed for nearly 3,000 years, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC into the capital of an ancient empire.[2] It was little more than an agricultural village for nine hundred years until the middle of the 20th century; since then it has grown rapidly as an upscale coastal suburb.[3][4] In 2004 it had a population of 15,922 according to the national census,[5] and an estimated population of 21,276 in January 2013.[6]

Historically Carthage has been known as: Latin: Carthago or Karthago, Ancient Greek: Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Etruscan: *Carθaza, from the Phoenician 𐤒𐤓𐤕 𐤇𐤃𐤔𐤕 Qart-ḥadašt[7] meaning New City (Aramaic: קרתא חדתא‎, Qarta Ḥdatha), implying it was a 'new Tyre'.[8]

The first civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic (a form of the word "Phoenician") or Carthaginian. The city of Carthage is located on the eastern side of Lake Tunis across from the center of Tunis. According to Greek historians, Carthage was founded by Canaanite-speaking Phoenician colonists from Tyre (in modern Lebanon) under the leadership of Queen Elissa or Dido. It became a large and rich city and thus a major power in the Mediterranean. The resulting rivalry with Syracuse, Numidia, and Rome was accompanied by several wars with respective invasions of each other's homeland.

Hannibal's invasion of Italy in the Second Punic War culminated in the Carthaginian victory at Cannae and led to a serious threat to the continuation of Roman rule over Italy; however, Carthage emerged from the conflict weaker after Hannibal's defeat at the Battle of Zama in 202 BC. Following the Third Punic War, the city was destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC. However, the Romans refounded Carthage, which became the empire's fourth most important city and the second most important city in the Latin West. It later became the capital of the short-lived Vandal kingdom. It remained one of the most important Roman cities until the Muslim conquest when it was destroyed a second time in 698.

The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote extensively on Carthaginian politics, and he considered the city to have one of the best governing institutions in the world, along with those of the Greek states of Sparta and Crete
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Kingdom of Makuria

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Makuria Empire

The Kingdom of Makuria (Old Nubian: Ⲙⲁⲕⲟⲩⲣⲓⲁ, Makouria; Arabic: مقرة‎, al-Muqurra) was a kingdom located in what is today Northern Sudan and Southern Egypt. Makuria originally covered the area along the Nile River from the Third Cataract to somewhere between the Fifth and Sixth Cataracts. It also had control over the trade routes, mines, and oases to the east and west. Its capital was Dongola (Arabic: Dunqulah), and the kingdom is sometimes known by the name of its capital.

By the end of the 6th century it had converted to Christianity, but in the 7th century Egypt was conquered by the Islamic armies, and Nubia was cut off from the rest of Christendom. In 651 an Arab army invaded, but it was repulsed and a treaty known as the baqt was signed creating a relative peace between the two sides that lasted until the 13th century. Makuria expanded, annexing its northern neighbour Nobatia either at the time of the Arab invasion or during the reign of King Merkurios. The period from roughly 750 to 1150 saw the kingdom stable and prosperous, in what has been called the "Golden Age".[1] Increased aggression from Egypt, and internal discord led to the state's collapse in the 14th century
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Nobatia, Makuria and Alodia/Alwa map

Nobatia /noʊˈbeɪʃə/ or Nobadia (/noʊˈbeɪdiə/; Greek: Νοβαδἰα, Nobadia; Old Nubian: Ⲛⲟⲩⲃⲁⲇⲓⲁ, Noubadia) was an ancient African Christian kingdom in Lower Nubia and subsequently a region of the larger Nubian Kingdom of Makuria. Its name is often given as al-Maris in Arabic histories.

Nobatia was likely founded by the Nobatae /ˈnɒbəti/, who had been invited into the region from the Egyptian desert by the Roman Emperor Diocletian to help defeat the Blemmyes in AD 297. Early Nobatia is quite likely the same civilization that is known to archeologists as the Ballana culture. Eventually the Nobatae were successful, and an inscription by Silko, "Basiliskos" of the Nobatae, claims to have driven the Blemmyes into the eastern deserts. Around this time the Nobatian capital was established at Pakhoras (modern Faras); soon after, Nobatia converted to non-Chalcedonian Christianity.

By 701, Nobatia had been annexed to its southern neighbor, Makuria. The circumstances of this merger are unknown. It most likely occurred before the Muslim invasion in 652, since the Arab histories speak of only one Christian state in Nubia and reached at least as far as Old Dongola. Nobatia seems to have maintained some autonomy in the new state. It was ruled by an eparch of Nobatia who was also titled the Domestikos of Pakhoras. These were originally appointed but seem to be dynastic in the later period. Some of their records have been found at Fort Ibrim, presenting a figure with a great deal of power. However, some Arab writers refer to the merged state as the "Kingdom of Makuria and Nobatia," which might imply a dual monarchy for at least some periods.

Nobatia was the closest part of Nubia to Egypt and was the most subject to the pressures of Arabization and Islamization. Over time the people of Nobatia gradually converted and married into Arab clans such as the Banu Kanz, although some remained independent in the Christian kingdom of Dotawo until its conquest by Sennar in 1504.


Alodia or Alwa was the southernmost of the three kingdoms of Christian Nubia; the other two were Nobatia and Makuria to the north.

Much about this kingdom is still unknown, despite its thousand year existence and considerable power and geographic size. Due to fewer excavations far less is known about Alodia than its northern counterparts. Most of what is known about Christian Nubia comes from either contemporary Egyptian sources and the intensive archaeological work done in Lower Nubia prior to the flooding of many sites by the Aswan High Dam. Neither of these sources shed much light on what went on in the Upper Nubia during this period. Alodia's location in modern Sudan rather than Egypt has also hampered excavations as the greater instability of that country has long hampered work. Several literary works in Ethiopian Orthodox liturgy however point to Ethiopian control and tribute both during ancient Axumite times and during the latter Solomonic restoration. The campaigns of the twin Emperors Ezana and Sezana and their younger sibling Hadefan appear from their chronicles a retaliation for withheld tribute and continued rebellion. The inhabitants of the regions had been helping the Bejan raiders that Axum perennially fought against. Axumite records list in meticulous detail the army units dispatched, the measures taken and the numbers killed and prisoners seized in the area.[citation needed]

The origins of the kingdom are little known. The first reference to the Alodia might be a Meroitic stela from the reign of Nastasen, that mention a region known as Alut that might be a reference to Alodia.[1] The first concrete reference is made Pliny the Elder who includes Alwa on his list of towns in Nubia. How Alodia is related to the ancient kingdom of Meroe is one of the most important questions. Alodia was centered on what was the heart of the Meroitic empire. By the time of Ezana of Axum it seems that Alwa was controlled by the Noba rather than the Kushites.

Alodia was converted to Christianity in the 6th century by missionaries sent by Byzantine Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora. Monophysite Christianity flourished in Alodia, more so than other Christian sects. Alodia was centered south of the great bend in the Nile river and south into the Gezira with its capital at Soba. P.L. Shennie mentions that the name of a king David, who died in 1015, was learned from a recently recovered tombstone.[2] At some points in time it seems as though Alodia and Makuria merged into one state, perhaps as a result of the close dynastic links between the two. If the two states did merge at certain times, Alodia regained its independence.

Ibn Hawqal is the most important external source on the country, being one of the only detailed first hand accounts of a traveller to the country. He describes Alodia as being larger, wealthier, and more powerful than Makuria, with the country covering a large region stretching from Ethiopia to the Kordofan.

Alodia was the farthest of the Nubian states from the influences of Egypt and thus the last of the Nubian states to be converted to Islam. The conventional date for the final destruction of Alodia is the Funj conquest of the region in the early sixteenth century. Archaeological evidence seems to show that the kingdom was in decline as early as the thirteenth century. Near the end of this century al-Harrani reports that the capital had been moved to Wayula. Later Mamluk emissaries reported that the region was divided among nine rulers.

Alodia seems to have preserved its identity after the Funj conquest and its incorporation into the Kingdom of Sennar. The Alodians, who became known as the Abdallab, revolted under Ajib the Great and formed the semi-autonomous Kingdom of Dongola that persisted for several centuries.

It may for a time have been a tributary kingdom to Axum. According to Axumite and later Ethiopian Imperial chronicles the two powers frequently clashed in the region of their borders. It would be odd that neither would record an independent polity or would not go to war with it before proceeding northward, in the case of Axum. It is a much stronger possibility that Alodia refers to a northernmost Kingdom within the Axumite Empire (or a southernmost Kingdom within the Egyptian). The former is more likely since there is ample evidence of its occurrence such as the Kingdoms of Gondar, Begemeder, Wello, Kaffa within the larger Ethiopian Empire while Egypt is more known as one whole nation, not a federated state.[citati
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Empire of Axum

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Empire of Kingdom

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Indian ocean trade route

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King Ousas Axum coin

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King Endybis Axum coin

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King Ousas coin

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Axum obelisk


The Kingdom of Aksum or Axum, also known as the Aksumite Empire, was a trading nation in the area of northern Ethiopia and Eritrea,[2] which existed from approximately 100–940 AD. It grew from the proto-Aksumite Iron Age period c. 4th century BC to achieve prominence by the 1st century AD, and was a major player in the commerce between the Roman Empire and Ancient India. The Aksumite rulers facilitated trade by minting their own currency, the state established its hegemony over the declining Kingdom of Kush and regularly entered the politics of the kingdoms on the Arabian peninsula, eventually extending its rule over the region with the conquest of the Himyarite Kingdom.

The Axumites erected a number of large stelae, which served a religious purpose in pre-Christian times. One of these granite columns is the largest such structure in the world, standing at 90 feet.[3] Under Ezana (fl. 320–360), Aksum later adopted Christianity. In the 7th century, early Muslims from Mecca also sought refuge from Quraysh persecution by travelling to the kingdom, a journey known in Islamic history as the First Hijra.

Its ancient capital, also called Aksum, was in northern Ethiopia. The Kingdom used the name "Ethiopia" as early as the 4th century.[4][5] It is also the alleged resting place of the Ark of the Covenant and the purported home of the Queen of Sheba
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Ghana Empire

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Ghana Empire

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Ghana Empire

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West African trade route

Mena: The Kingdom of Ghana was probably created in 3000 BC because building discovered in the city of Dar Ichit date to 3000 BC.

The Ghana (Wagadu) Empire (before c. 830 until c. 1235) was located in what is now southeastern Mauritania and western Mali. Complex societies had existed in the region since about 1500 BC, and around Ghana's core region since about 300 AD. When Ghana's ruling dynasty began is uncertain; it is first mentioned in documentary sources around 830 AD by Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī.[1] The domestication of the camel, which preceded Muslims and Islam by several centuries, brought about a gradual change in trade, and, for the first time, the extensive gold, ivory trade, and salt resources of the region could be sent north and east to population centers in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe in exchange for manufactured goods.

The empire grew rich from the trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt. This trade produced an increasing surplus, allowing for larger urban centers. It also encouraged territorial expansion to gain control over the lucrative trade routes.

The first written mention of the kingdom comes from Arabic language sources some time after the conquest of North Africa by Muslims, when geographers began compiling comprehensive accounts of the world known to Islam around 800. The sources for the earlier periods are very strange as to its society, government or culture, though they do describe its location and note its commercial relations. The Cordoban scholar Abu Ubayd al-Bakri collected stories from a number of travelers to the region, and gave a detailed description of the kingdom in 1067/1068 (460 AH). He claimed that the Ghana could "put 200,000 men into the field, more than 40,000 of them archers" and noted they had cavalry forces as well
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Mali Empire

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Mali Empire

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Mali Empire

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Malian Emperor Mansa Musa

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Mali Empire

Mali Empire

The Mali Empire (Manding: Nyeni;[4] English: Niani), also historically referred to as the Manden Kurufaba[1] was a Mandinka empire in West Africa from c. 1230 to c. 1600. The empire was founded by Sundiata Keita and became renowned for the wealth of its rulers, especially Mansa Musa. The Mali Empire had many profound cultural influences on West Africa, allowing the spread of its language, laws and customs along the Niger River. It extended over a large area and consisted of numerous vassal kingdoms and provinces

The Mali Empire[edit]

The name Mālī (مالي) was recorded as the name of the empire by Ibn Battuta (d. 1368/9). According to Battuta's contemporary Chihab al-Umari (d. 1384), the name of the empire was Nyeni (Niani), after its capital. Alternative variants of the name Mali included Mallel, Mel, and Melit.

The native name Manden for the territory was eponymous of the name of the ethnic group, the Manden’ka, with the ka suffix meaning "people of".[5] From the evidence of the Epic of Sundiata, a semi-historical account of the empire's foundation in the early 13th century,[clarification needed] the territory with this name comprised most of present-day northern Guinea and southern Mali. The empire originated as a federation of Mandinka tribes called the Manden Kurufaba[1] (Manden being the country, kuru meaning "assembly" and faba meaning "great entirety"). The rulers of Mali came to be called mansa, meaning “emperor” or “master.” Mansa Musa was Mali’s most renowned king, ruling from 1312 to 1337 CE. He was the grandson of Sundiata’s half brother, and ruled Mali at a time of great prosperity, during which trade tripled. During his rule, he doubled the land area of Mali; it became a larger kingdom than any in Europe at the time. The cities of Mali became important trading centers for all of West Africa as well as famous centers of wealth, culture, and learning. Timbuktu, an important city in Mali, became one of the major cultural centers not only of Africa but of the entire world. Vast libraries and Islamic universities were built. These became meeting places of the finest poets, scholars, and artists of Africa and the Middle East. Mansa Musa, who was Muslim, was perhaps best known outside of Mali for his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 C.E. According to some accounts, 60,000 people accompanied him, along with 200 camels laden with gold, silver, food, clothing, and other goods. This pilgrimage displayed Mansa Musa’s enormous wealth and generosity

Organization[edit]

The Manden Kurufaba founded by Mari Djata I was composed of the "three freely allied states" of Mali, Mema and Wagadou plus the Twelve Doors of Mali.[11] It is important to remember that Mali, in this sense, strictly refers to the city-state of Niani.

The Twelve Doors of Mali were a coalition of conquered or allied territories, mostly within Manden, with sworn allegiance to Sundiata and his descendants. Upon stabbing their spears into the ground before Sundiata's throne, each of the twelve kings relinquished their kingdom to the Keita dynasty.[11] In return for their submission, they became "farbas" a combination of the Mandinka words "farin" and "ba" (great farin).[21] Farin was a general term for northern commander at the time. These farbas would rule their old kingdoms in the name of the mansa with most of the authority they held prior to joining the Manden Kurufaba.

The Great Assembly[edit]

The Gbara or Great Assembly would serve as the Mandinka deliberative body until the collapse of the Manden Kurufa in 1645. Its first meeting, at the famous Kouroukan Fouga (Division of the World), had 29 clan delegates presided over by a belen-tigui (master of ceremony). The final incarnation of the Gbara, according to the surviving traditions of northern Guinea, held 32 positions occupied by 28 clans.[22]

Social, economic, and government reformation[edit]

The Kouroukan Fouga also put in place social and economic reforms including prohibitions on the maltreatment of prisoners and slaves, installing documents between clans which clearly stated who could say what about whom. Also, Sundiata divided the lands amongst the people assuring everyone had a place in the empire and fixed exchange rates for common products
 
zarahan- aka Enrique Cardova
Member # 15718
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After king Kashta ("the Kushite") invaded Egypt in the 8th century BC, the Kushite kings ruled as Pharaohs of the Twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt for a century, until they were expelled by Psamtik I in 656 BC.


Good info. People should also know that the Kushites
invaded Egypt long before the 25th Dynasty. It wasn't
only around the 25th era.

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The Kushites almost destroyed Egypt as early as the 17th Dynasty era (circa 1575–1550 BC) according to a 2003 report by Egyptologists of the British Museum, deciphering inscriptions in the tomb of Sobeknakht, a Governor of El Kab, an important provincial capital during the latter part of the 17th Dynasty. According to V. Davies, Director of the Department of Ancient Egypt and the Sudan: “[Kush] swept over the mountains, over the Nile, without limit.. Had they stayed to occupy Egypt, the Kushites might have eliminated it. That’s how close Egypt came to extinction. But the Egyptians were resilient enough to survive, and shortly afterwards inaugurated the great imperial age known as the New Kingdom. The Kushites weren’t interested in occupation. They went raiding for precious objects, a symbol of domination. They did a lot of damage.”[11] As the Dynastic civilization grew, Egyptian arms were to also expand into nearby territory of the Philistines, and Nubian and Egyptian fighting men helped establish camps and way stations in northern Sinai, and settlements in southern Philistine tribal lands.

-- Alberge, Dalya.(2006) "Tomb reveals Ancient Egypt's humiliating secret." Report of British Museum, El Kab Excavation. Vivian Davies, Director – Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan.
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Songhai Empire

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Songhai Empire

The Songhai Empire, also known as the Songhay Empire, was a Songhai state located in western Africa. From the mid-15th to the late 16th century, Songhai was one of the largest Islamic empires in history.[4] This empire bore the same name as its leading ethnic group, the Songhai. Its capital was the city of Gao. A Songhai state had existed since the 11th century. Its base of power was on the bend of the Niger River in present day Niger and Burkina Faso.

The Songhai state has existed in one form or another for over a thousand years, if one traces its rulers from the settlement of Gao to Songhai's vassal status under the Mali Empire to its continuation in Niger as the Dendi Kingdom.

The Songhai are thought to have settled at Gao as early as 800 CE, but did not establish the city as their capital until the 11th century, during the reign of Dia Kossoi. During the second half of the 13th century Gao was conquered by the Mali Empire, and remained under its control until the 15th century, when Songhai reclaimed it as its capital
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Emirate of Cordoba

The Emirate of Córdoba (Arabic: إمارة قرطبة, Imārah Qurṭuba) was an independent emirate in the Iberian Peninsula between 756 and 929 with Córdoba as its capital.

After the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711–718, the Iberian Peninsula was established as a province under the Umayyad Caliphate. These rulers established their capital in Córdoba and received from the Caliph of Damascus the title of wali or emir.

In 756 Abd-ar-Rahman I ignored the Abbasid caliphs in Damascus and became an independent emir of Córdoba. He had been on the run for six years after the Umayyads had lost the position of caliph held in Damascus in 750. Intent on regaining a position of power, he defeated the existing Islamic rulers of the area who defied Umayyad rule and united various local fiefdoms into an emirate.[2] However, this first unification of al-Andalus under Abd-ar-Rahman still took more than 25 years to complete (Toledo, Zaragoza, Pamplona, Barcelona).

For the next century and a half, his descendants continued as emirs of Córdoba, with nominal control over the rest of al-Andalus and sometimes even parts of western North Africa, but with real control, particularly over the marches along the Christian border, their power vacillating depending on the competence of the individual emir. Indeed, the power of emir Abdallah ibn Muhammad (circa 900), for example, did not extend beyond Córdoba itself.

Upon arrival to the throne of his grandson Abd-al-Rahman III, who succeeded him in 912, the political decline of the emirate was obvious. Abd-al-Rahman III rapidly restored Umayyad power throughout al-Andalus and extended it into western North Africa as well. In 929, to impose its authority and end the riots and conflicts that ravaged the Iberian Peninsula, he proclaimed himself caliph, elevating the emirate to a position in prestige not only with the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad but also the Shi'ite Fatimid caliph in Tunis—with whom he was competing for control of North Africa.

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The Caliphate of Córdoba (Arabic: خلافة قرطبة‎; trans. Khilāfat Qurṭuba) was an Islamic Umayyad dynasty which ruled Al-Andalus in the Iberian Peninsula and part of North Africa from the city of Córdoba from 929 to 1031, formerly the region was dominated by the Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba (756–929). The period was characterized by an expansion of trade and culture, and saw the construction of masterpieces of al-Andalus architecture (including the Great Mosque of Córdoba). In January 929, Abd-ar-Rahman III proclaimed himself caliph (Arabic: خليفة) of Córdoba[2] in place of his original title, Emir of Córdoba (Arabic: أمير قرطبة 'Amīr Qurṭuba). Abd-ar-Rahman III was a member of the Umayyad dynasty, which had held the title of Emir of Córdoba since 756.

The caliphate disintegrated during a civil war (the Fitna of al-Andalus) between the descendants of the last caliph, Hisham II, and the successors of his hayib, Al-Mansur. In 1031, after years of infighting, the caliphate fractured into a number of independent Muslim taifa (kingdoms).[

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Almoravid Empire

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Almoravid Empire

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Almoravid Empire

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Moor Almoravid general Abu Bakr

The Almoravids (Berber: ⵉⵎⵕⴰⴱⴹⴻⵏ Imṛabḍen, Arabic: المرابطون‎ Al-Murābiṭūn) were a Berber dynasty of Morocco,[1][2] who formed an empire in the 11th century that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus. Their capital was Marrakesh, a city they founded in 1062. The dynasty originated among the Lamtuna and the Gudala, nomadic Berber tribes of the Sahara, traversing the territory between the Draa, the Niger, and the Senegal rivers.[3]

The Almoravids were crucial in preventing a fall of Al-Andalus to the Iberian Christian kingdoms, when they decisively beat a coalition of the Castilian and Aragonese armies at the Battle of Sagrajas. This enabled them to control an empire that stretched 3,000 kilometers north to south. However, the rule of the dynasty was relatively short-lived. The Almoravids fell - at the height of their power - when they failed to quell the Masmuda-led rebellion initiated by Ibn Tumart. As a result, their last king Ishaq ibn Ali was killed in Marrakesh in April 1147 by the Almohads, who replaced them as a ruling dynasty both in Morocco and Al-Andalus.

The Berber peoples of the Maghreb in the early Middle Ages could be roughly classified into three major groups: the Zenata across the north, the Masmuda concentrated in central Morocco, and the Sanhaja, clustered in two areas: the western part of the Sahara and the hills of the eastern Maghreb.[10][11] The eastern Sanhaja included the Kutama Berbers, who had been the base of the Fatimid rise in the early 10th century, and the Zirid dynasty, who ruled Ifriqiya as vassals of the Fatimids after the latter moved to Egypt in 972. The western Sanhaja were divided into several tribes: the Gazzula and the Lamta in the Draa valley and the foothills of the Anti-Atlas range; further south, encamped in the western Sahara desert, were the Massufa, the Lamtuna and the Banu Warith; and most southerly of all, the Gudala (or Judala), in littoral Mauritania down to the borderlands of the Senegal River.

The western Sanhaja had been converted to Islam some time in the 9th century. They were subsequently united in the 10th century and, with the zeal of neophyte converts, launched several campaigns against the "Sudanese" (pagan black peoples of sub-Saharan Africa).[12] Under their king Tinbarutan ibn Usfayshar, the Sanhaja Lamtuna erected (or captured) the citadel of Awdaghust, a critical stop on the trans-Saharan trade route. After the collapse of the Sanhaja union, Awdagust passed over to the Ghana empire; and the trans-Saharan routes were taken over by the Zenata Maghrawa of Sijilmassa. The Maghrawa also exploited this disunion to dislodge the Sanhaja Gazzula and Lamta out of their pasturelands in the Sous and Draa valleys. Around 1035, the Lamtuna chieftain Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Tifat (alias Tarsina), tried to reunite the Sanhaja desert tribes, but his reign lasted less than three years

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Almohad Empire

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Almohad Empire

The Almohad dynasty (Berber: Imweḥḥden, from Arabic الموحدون al-Muwaḥḥidun, "the monotheists" or "the unifiers") was a Moroccan[5][6] Berber-Muslim dynasty founded in the 12th century that established a Berber state in Tinmel in the Atlas Mountains in roughly 1120.[7]

The movement was started by Ibn Tumart in the Masmuda tribes of southern Morocco, followed by Abd al-Mu'min al-Gumi between 1130 and his death in 1163. Between 1145 and 1147 the Almohads overthrew the ruling Almoravids in governing Morocco, then extended their power over all of the Maghreb by 1159. Al-Andalus followed the fate of Africa and all Islamic Iberia was under Almohad rule by 1172.[8]

The Almohad dominance of Iberia continued until 1212, when Muhammad III, "al-Nasir" (1199–1214) was defeated at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in the Sierra Morena by an alliance of the Christian princes of Castile, Aragon, Navarre, and Portugal. Nearly all of the Moorish dominions in Iberia were lost soon after, with the great Moorish cities of Cordova and Seville falling to the Christians in 1236 and 1248 respectively.

The Almohads continued to rule in Africa until the piecemeal loss of territory through the revolt of tribes and districts enabled the rise of their most effective enemies, the Marinids in 1215. The last representative of the line, Idris al-Wathiq, was reduced to the possession of Marrakesh, where he was murdered by a slave in 1269; the Marinids seized Marrakesh, ending the Almohad domination of the Western Maghreb
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
I learn symbolism watching Jordan Maxwell, David Icke and Michael Tsarion video on youtube. some of the Moorish flag have secret society symbol. Some people speculate that the Moors introduce modern secret society to Europe. One of the three Moorish tribes Zenata, Masmuda and Sanhaja was jewish or had a lot of Jewish members.

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Almohad flag

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Marinid flag

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Morocco flag
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Kanem Bornu Empire

http://afrolegends.com/2011/12/30/the-kanem-bornu-empire-linking-ancient-chad-libya-and-nigeria/

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Kanem Bornu Empire

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Kanem Organa flag


The Kanem-Bornu Empire: linking ancient Chad, Libya, Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria.

When the Zaghawa (people of Kanem) arrived in the area around Lake Chad, they found independent walled-cities states from the Sao civilization, a civilization which had flourished around the 6th century, with its center around the Chari river, south of Lake Chad. The Zaghawa adopted some of the Sao customs, but fight among the two lasted from the 7th century until the 16th. The conquest of Kanem by the Zaghawa was done under the Duguwa dynasty which was started by King Sef (also known as Saif… some people eager to change African history state that the Zaghawa were from Yemen… but we all know that they were local people) about 700 CE. The dynasty, Sayfawa or Sefuwa, is named for King Dugu, one of Sef’s sons, who was ruling about 785 CE. Abandoning their nomadic lifestyle, the Zaghawa established a capital at N’Jimi (meaning “south” — the location of this town is still unknown, but it is believed to be around Lake Fitri). Under the rule of Dugu, Kanem expanded to become an empire. The Zaghawa kings, called maï, were regarded as divine and belonged to a ruling establishment known as the Magumi. They were recognized for a great amount of horses. Kanem’s expansion peaked during the reign of Maï Dunama Dabbalemi (ca. 1221-59) and extended northward into the Fezzan region (Libya), westward into Kano (Nigeria), eastward to Ouaddaï (or Wadai), and southward into the Adamawa grasslands (Cameroon). They converted to islam around the 11th century CE.

Group of Kanem-Bu warriors in the 1800s
Group of Kanem-Bu warriors in the 1800s

By the end of the 14th century, internal struggles and external attacks had torn Kanem apart. Between 1376 and 1400, six Maïs reigned, but were killed by foreign invaders. Finally, around 1396 the Bulala invaders forced the once strong Sayfawa dynasty to abandon Njimi and move to Bornu on the western edge of Lake Chad. Around 1472, Maï Ali Dunamami fortified the Bornu state, and established the capital at Ngazargamu, which had more fertile lands. Over time the inter-marriage between the Kanembu and the Borno people created a new people, the Kanembu, and a language called Kanuri.

The Kanem-Bornu empire peaked during the reign of Maï Idris Alooma (ca. 1571 – 1603) who is remembered for his great military and diplomatic skills. His main adversaries were the Hausa to the west, the Tuareg and Toubou to the north, and the Bulala to the east. One epic poem tells of his victories in 330 wars, and over 1,000 battles. He was a true military genius, and some of his innovations included the use of fixed military camps (with walls), permanent sieges, and “scorched earth” tactics, armored horses and riders, the use of Berber camels, of skilled Kotoko boatmen, and of iron-helmeted musketeers trained by Turkish military advisers. He had very strong diplomatic ties with Tripoli, Egypt, and the Ottoman empire, which at some point sent a 200-member ambassadorial party across the desert to Alooma’s court in Ngazargamu. The state revenues came from tribute from vassal states, trans-saharan trade route, and slave trade. Many products such as cotton, natron (sodium carbonate), kola nuts, ivory, ostrich feathers, perfume, was, and hides were exported north via the Sahara desert.

Map of the Kanem and Kanem-Bornu empires

By the end of the 17th century, the empire started declining, and by the 18th century, it only extended westward into the land of the Hausa. By the early 19th century, the declining empire could not sustain the advance from the fulani warriors of Usman Dan Fodio who proclaimed the jihad war against the non-muslims.

To learn more about the Kanem-Bornu empire, check out: Jamtan.com, Daily Kos- Ancient Africa, BlackPast.org, The empire by the lake. Don’t forget to check out the book “Kanem-Borno: One Thousand Years of Splendor (Kingdoms of Africa)” by Philip Koslow. Back in those days, Lake Chad covered an area of about 10,000 m2… today it has sadly shrunk down to 1,300 m2, and is still shrinking! I could not find a really good map of the Kanem or Kanem-Bornu empire, so I used Google maps and known maps from history books to make my own with some of the boundaries cited earlier. I have overlaid the Kanem and the Kanem-Bornu empires on the same map to give a better idea. Enjoy!

The Kanem Empire (ca. 700 - 1376) was located in the present countries of Chad, Nigeria and Libya.[2] At its height it encompassed an area covering not only much of Chad, but also parts of southern Libya (Fezzan) and eastern Niger, northeastern Nigeria and northern Cameroon. The history of the Empire is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle or Girgam discovered in 1851 by the German traveller Heinrich Barth

Origins

The empire of Kanem began forming around AD 300 under the nomadic Tebu-speaking Kanembu. According to the Girgam, the Kanembu were forced southwest towards the fertile lands around Lake Chad by political pressure and desiccation in their former range. The area already possessed independent, walled city-states belonging to the Sao culture. Under the leadership of the Duguwa dynasty, the Kanembu would eventually dominate the Sao, but not before adopting many of their customs. War between the two continued up to the late 16th century.

One theory proposes that the lost state of Agisymba (mentioned by Ptolemy in the middle of the 2nd century AD) was the antecedent of the Kanem Empire

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Kanem Bornu Mai

http://www.egyptsearch.com/forums/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=006597
 
Troll Patrol # Ish Gebor
Member # 18264
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Nice information. And beautiful sketch.
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Nok Kingdom

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Nok statue

The Nok culture appeared in Northern Nigeria around 1000 BC and vanished under unknown circumstances around 300 AD in the region of West Africa. It is thought to have been the product of an ancestral nation that branched to create Benue-Congo peoples such as the Edo, Idoma, Igala, Igbo, Nupe and Yoruba. The Kwaterkwashi Culture or Sokoto Culture located to the North west of Nok it thought to be related to the Nok. Nok's social system is thought to have been highly advanced. The Nok culture was considered to be the earliest sub-Saharan producer of life-sized Terracotta.

The refinement of this culture is attested to by the image of a Nok dignitary at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The dignitary is portrayed wearing a "crooked baton" ([3], [4]). The dignitary is also portrayed sitting with flared nostrils, and an open mouth suggesting performance. Other images show figures on horseback, indicating that the Nok culture possessed the horse.

Iron use, in smelting and forging for tools, appears in Nok culture in Africa at least by 550 BC and possibly earlier. Christopher Ehret has suggested that iron smelting was independently discovered in the region prior to 1000 BC

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Benin Empire

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Benin Empire

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Oba of Benin

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Oba of Benin

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Oba of Benin

Empire (1440–1897) was a pre-colonial empire, with its capital Benin City now located in Edo state in what is now Nigeria. It should not be confused with the modern-day country called Benin, formerly called Dahomey

The original people and founders of the Benin Empire, the Edo people, were initially ruled by the Ogiso (Kings of the Sky) dynasty who called their land Igodomigodo. The rulers or kings were commonly known as Ogiso. Igodo, the first Ogiso, wielded much influence and gained popularity as a good ruler. He died after a long reign and was succeeded by Ere, his eldest son. In the 12th century, a great palace intrigue and battle for power erupted between the warrior crown prince Ekaladerhan son of the last Ogiso and his young paternal uncle. In anger over an oracle, Prince Ekaladerhan left the royal court with his warriors. When his old father the Ogiso died, the Ogiso dynasty was ended as the people and royal kingmakers preferred their king's son as natural next in line to rule.

The exiled Prince Ekaladerhan who was not known in Ile-Ife, somehow earned the title of Ooni (Oghene) at Ile-Ife and refused to return, then sent his son Oranmiyan to become king. Prince Oranmiyan took up his abode in the palace built for him at Usama by the elders (now a coronation shrine). Soon after his arrival he married a beautiful lady, Erinmwinde, daughter of Osa-nego, was the ninth Enogie (Duke) of Ego, by whom he had a son. After some years residence here he called a meeting of the people and renounced his office, remarking that the country was a land of vexation, Ile-Ibinu (by which name the country was afterward known) and that only a child born, trained and educated in the arts and mysteries of the land could reign over the people. He caused his son born to him by Erinmwinde to be made King in his place, and returned to his native land, Ile-Ife. After some years in Ife, he left for Oyo, where he also left a son behind on leaving the place, and his son Ajaka ultimately became the first Alafin of Oyo of the present line, while Oranmiyan himself was reigning as Oni of Ife. Therefore, Oranmiyan of Ife, the father of Eweka I, the Oba of Benin, was also the father of Ajaka, the first Alafin of Oyo.

By the 15th century, Edo as a system of protected settlements expanded into a thriving city-state. In the 15th century, the twelfth Oba in line, Oba Ewuare the Great (1440–1473) would expand the city-state to an empire.

It was not until the 15th century during the reign of Oba Ewuare the Great that the kingdom's administrative centre, the city Ubinu, began to be known as Benin City by the Portuguese, and would later be adopted by the locals as well. Before then, due to the pronounced ethnic diversity at the kingdom's headquarters during the 15th century from the successes of Oba Ewuare, the earlier name ('Ubinu') by a tribe of the Edos was colloquially spoken as "Bini" by the mix of Itsekhiri, Edo, Urhobo living together in the royal administrative centre of the kingdom. The Portuguese would write this down as Benin City. Though, farther Edo clans, such as the Itsekiris and the Urhobos still referred to the city as Ubini up till the late 19th century, as evidence implies.

Aside from Benin City, the system of rule of the Oba in his kingdom, even through the golden age of the kingdom, was still loosely based after the Ogiso dynasty, which was military and royal protection in exchange of use of resources and implementation of taxes paid to the royal administrative centre. Language and culture was not enforced but remained heterogeneous and localized according to each group within the kingdom, though a local "Enogie" (duke) was often appointed by the Oba for specified ethnic areas.

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Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today western and northern Nigeria. Established in the 14th century, the Oyo Empire grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by pre-colonial explorers. It rose through the outstanding organizational skills of the Yoruba, wealth gained from trade and its powerful cavalry. The Oyo Empire was the most politically important state in the region from the mid-17th to the late 18th century,[citation needed] holding sway not only over most of the other kingdoms in Yorubaland, but also over nearby African states, notably the Fon Kingdom of Dahomey in the modern Republic of Benin to the west

Early period (1300s–1535)

A Survey of Old Oyo Palace Compound
Oranyan, the first oba (king) of Oyo, was succeeded by Oba Ajaka, Alaafin of Oyo. Ajaka was deposed, because he lacked Yoruba military virtue and allowed his sub-chiefs too much independence. Leadership was then conferred upon Ajaka's brother, Shango, who was later deified as the deity of thunder and lightning. Ajaka was restored after Shango's death. Ajaka returned to the throne thoroughly more warlike and oppressive. His successor, Kori, managed to conquer the rest of what later historians would refer to as metropolitan Oyo.[3]

Oyo-Ile

The heart of metropolitan Oyo was its capital at Oyo-Ile, (also known as Katunga or Old Oyo or Oyo-oro).[4] The two most important structures in Oyo-Ile was the 'afin,' or palace of the Oba, and his market. The palace was at the center of the city close to the Oba's market called 'Oja-oba'. Around the capital was a tall earthen wall for defense with 17 gates. The importance of the two large structures (the palace and the Oja Oba) signified the importance of the king in Oyo.

The Nupe occupation

Oyo had grown into a formidable inland power by the end of the 14th century. For over a century, the Yoruba state had expanded at the expense of its neighbors. During the reign of Onigbogi, Oyo suffered military defeats at the hands of the Nupe led by Tsoede.[5] Sometime around 1535, the Nupe occupied Oyo and forced its ruling dynasty to take refuge in the kingdom of Borgu.[6] The Nupe sacked the capital, destroying Oyo as a regional power until the early 17th century.[7]

Imperial period (1608-1800)

The Yoruba of Oyo went through an interrugnum of 80 years as an exiled dynasty after its defeat by the Nupe. They re-established Oyo as more centralized and expansive than ever. The people created a government that established its power over a vast empire.[6] During the 17th century, Oyo began a long stretch of growth, becoming a major empire.[7] Oyo never encompassed all Yoruba-speaking people, but it was the most populous kingdom in Yoruba history.[8]

Reconquest and expansion

Oyo Empire and surrounding states, c. 1625.
The key to Yoruba rebuilding of Oyo was a stronger military and a more centralized government. Taking a cue from their Nupe enemies (whom they called "Tapa"), the Yoruba rearmed with armor and cavalry.[6] Oba Ofinran, Alaafin of Oyo, succeeded in regaining Oyo's original territory from the Nupe.[5] A new capital, Oyo-Igboho, was constructed, and the original became known as Old Oyo.[5] The next oba, Eguguojo, conquered nearly all of Yorubaland.[5] After this, Oba Orompoto led attacks to obliterate the Nupe to ensure Oyo was never threatened by them again.[5] During the reign of Oba, Ajiboyede, he held the first Bere festival, an event to celebrate peace in the kingdom. Celebrated regularly, it would retain much significance among the Yoruba long after the fall of Oyo.[5]

Under his successor, Abipa, the Yoruba repopulated Oyo-Ile and rebuilt the original capital.[5] Despite a failed attempt to conquer the Benin Empire sometime between 1578 and 1608,[5] Oyo continued to expand. The Yoruba allowed autonomy to the southeast of metropolitan Oyo, where the non-Yoruba areas could act as a buffer between Oyo and Imperial Benin.[9] By the end of the 16th century, the Ewe and Aja states of modern Benin were paying tribute to Oyo.[10]
Dahomey Wars

The reinvigorated Oyo Empire began raiding southward as early as 1682.[11] By the end of its military expansion, Oyo's borders would reach to the coast some 200 miles southwest of its capital.[12] It met little serious opposition until the early 18th century. In 1728, the Oyo Empire invaded the Kingdom of Dahomey in a major campaign of its cavalry.[11][13] Dahomey warriors, on the other hand, had no cavalry but many firearms. Their gunshots scared the Oyo cavalry horses and prevented their charging.[14] Dahomey's army also built fortifications such as trenches, which forced the Oyo army to fight as infantry.[15] The battle lasted four days, but the Yoruba were eventually victorious after reinforcements arrived.[15] Dahomey was forced to pay tribute to Oyo. The Yoruba invaded Dahomey seven times before finally subjugating the small kingdom in 1748.[16]
Later conquest

With its cavalry, Oyo campaigned successfully in conquest and suppression over great distances. The Oyo army was able to attack defensive fortifications, but it was harder to supply an army, and they withdrew when supplies ran out.[17] The Oyo did not use guns in its major conquests. The military waited until the 19th century to adopt them.[17] In 1764, a joint Akan(Akyem)-Dahomey-Oyo[18] force defeated an Asante army.[11] The alliance victory defined borders between the neighboring states.[11] Oyo led a successful campaign into Mahi territory north of Dahomey in the late 18th century.[11] The Yoruba also used the forces of their tributaries; for instance, they accomplished a 1784 naval blockade of Badagri with an Oyo-Dahomey-Lagos force.[19]
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Monomotapa Empire territory included most of Southern Africa.

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Monomotapa Portuguese map

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Monomotapa Empire

THE MONOMOTAPA EMPIRE AND KING MUTATO (1440)
In 1440, the empire of Monomotapa was under the leadership of the fierce and awesome King Mutato, or "Mutato the Great." His vast empire had been developed by Vakarang immigrants who were invaders. The Monomotapa Empire covered what is known today as Rhodesia, Kalahara, Mozambique, and into Transvaal in South Africa.
King Mutato established effective political rule, and promoted eco- nomic development and prosperity.

The Monomotapa used iron technology and allied crafts, long before the Christian era. With over 4000 active mines, and gold being the lead- ing export commodity, iron work was still highly regarded. The drive for excellence in everything produced was reflected in the artistic work throughout the empire.

The building of the temples and beautiful stone structures, rivaled the construction associated with the great pyramids in Egypt. The Monomotapa were great stonemasons and architects. According to records in stone, a highly developed civilization existed in South Africa, at the same time of the great Egyptian and Ethiopian era, in the North.

King Mutato mastered a plan to unite the Blacks throughout the entire Monomotapa Empire. Their enemies knew that if they could keep the Blacks fighting amongst themselves, they would be a divided people, lacking in power, and the enemy would have access to their wealth.

Mutato moved quickly to recruit, develop, and train armies, under the supervision of capable generals. Additional strategic leadership by Matope, Mutato's son, who came into power after Mutato's death, strengthened and unified Monomotapa. However, after Matope's death, Monomotapa swiftly declined, and the empire began to break up
http://www.nbufront.org/MastersMuseums/JHClarke/HistoricalPersonalities/hp13.html

The Kingdom of Mutapa, sometimes referred to as the Mutapa Empire (Shona: Wene we Mutapa; Portuguese: Monomotapa) was a Shona kingdom which stretched between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers of southern Africa in the modern states of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Its founders are probably culturally and politically related to the builders who constructed Great Zimbabwe

Towers of Great Zimbabwe.
The origins of the ruling dynasty at Mutapa go back to some time in the first half of the 15th century.[4] According to oral tradition, the first "Mwene" was a warrior prince named Nyatsimba Mutota from the Kingdom of Zimbabwe sent to find new sources of salt in the north.[4] Prince Mutota found his salt among the Tavara, a Shona subdivision, who were prominent elephant hunters. They were conquered,[5] a capital was established 350 km north of Great Zimbabwe at Zvongombe by the Zambezi.[6]

Expansion

Mutota's successor, Mwenemutapa Matope, extended this new kingdom into an empire encompassing most of the lands between Tavara and the Indian Ocean.[5] The Mwenemutapa became very wealthy by exploiting copper from Chidzurgwe and ivory from the middle Zambezi. This expansion weakened the Torwa kingdom, the southern Shona state from which Mutota and his dynasty originated.[5] Matope's armies overran the kingdom of the Manyika as well as the coastal kingdoms of Kiteve and Madanda.[5] By the time the Portuguese arrived on the coast of Mozambique, the Mutapa Kingdom was the premier Shona state in the region.[5]He raised a strong army which conquered the Dande area that is Tonga and Tavara
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Ashanti Empire

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Ashanti King in Yam ceremony

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Golden mask

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Ashante General

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Ashanti Dwa

The Ashanti (or Asante) Empire (or Confederacy), also Asanteman (1701–1957), was a West Africa sovereign state of the ethnic Akan people of Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central region, Eastern region, Greater Accra region and Western region, currently South Ghana. The Ashanti (or Asantefo) are of Akan origin. They are a martial and highly disciplined society of West Africa inhabiting an area known as "Akanland". They used their military power, which came from effective strategy and an early adoption of European firearms, to create an empire that stretched from central Ghana to present-day Benin and Ivory Coast, bordered by the Dagomba kingdom to the north and Dahomey to the east. Due to the empire's military prowess, wealth, architecture, sophisticated hierarchy and culture, the Ashanti empire was studied and had one of the largest historiographies by European, primarily British, sources of any indigenous Sub-Saharan African political entity.

From the 17th century AD, Asanteman king Osei Tutu (c. 1695 – 1717), along with Okomfo Anokye, established the Kingdom of Asanteman, with the Golden Stool of Asante as a singular unifying symbol. Osei Tutu engaged in a massive Asante territorial expansion.[3] He built up the army based on introducing new organization and turning a disciplined royal and paramilitary army into an effective fighting machine.[3] In 1701, the Asanteman army conquered Denkyira, giving the Ashanti access to the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean coastal trade with Europeans, notably the Dutch. King Opoku Ware I (1720 – 1745) engaged in further Akan territorial expansion, and king Kusi Obodom (1750 – 1764) succeeded king Opoku Ware I.[3] Asante king Osei Kwadwo (1764 – 1777) imposed administrative reforms that allowed Asanteman to be governed effectively. King Osei Kwame Panyin (1777 – 1803), and King Osei Tutu Kwame (1804 – 1824) continued Asanteman territorial consolidation.[3]

Asanteman is the location of Lake Bosumtwi, Ghana's only natural lake. The state's current economic revenue is derived mainly from trading in gold bars, cocoa, kola nuts and agriculture; clearing forest to plant cassava, maize and yams.[4]

Today the Ashanti monarchy continues as a constitutionally protected, sub-nation state and traditional state within Ghana. The current king of Asanteman is Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Asantehene.
 
Child Of The KING
Member # 9422
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Refreshing Info Mena and Zarahan.

Seems there is no excuse not to find Info On these regions and coincides with the info on the other forum.

Bless
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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Kingdom of Kongo

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Kingdom of Kongo

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Joao King of Kongo

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Kingdom of Kongo

The Kingdom of Kongo (Kongo: Kongo dya Ntotila[4] or Wene wa Kongo[5] or Portuguese: Reino do Congo) was an African kingdom located in west central Africa in what is now northern Angola, Cabinda, the Republic of the Congo, and the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[6] as well as the southernmost part of Gabon.[7] At its greatest extent, it reached from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Kwango River in the east, and from the Congo River in the north to the Kwanza River in the south. The kingdom consisted of several core provinces ruled by the Manikongo, the Portuguese version of the Kongo title 'Mwene Kongo', meaning lord or ruler of the Kongo kingdom, but its sphere of influence extended to neighbouring kingdoms, such as Ngoyo, Kakongo, Ndongo and Matamba.[3]

The kingdom largely existed from c. 1390 to 1891 as an independent state, and from 1891 to 1914 as a vassal state of the Kingdom of Portugal, with the defeat by the Portuguese of a 1914 revolt resulting in the forced abolition of the titular monarchy and the assimilation of its remaining territories into the colony of Angola. The modern-day Bundu dia Kongo sect favors reviving the kingdom through secession from Angola, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Gabon.[

The first king of the Kingdom of Kongo Dya Ntotila was Lukeni lua Nimi (circa 1380-1420).The name Nimi a Lukeni appeared in later oral traditions and some modern historians, notably Jean Cuvelier, popularized it. Lukeni lua Nimi or Nimi a Lukeni, became the founder of Kongo when he conquered the kingdom of the Mwene Kabunga (or Mwene Mpangala), which lay upon a mountain to his south. He transferred his rule to this mountain, the Mongo dia Kongo or "mountain of Kongo", and made Mbanza Kongo, the town there, his capital. Two centuries later the Mwene Kabunga's descendants still symbolically challenged the conquest in an annual celebration. The rulers that followed Lukeni all claimed some form of relation to his kanda or lineage and were known as the Kilukeni. The Kilukeni kanda or "house" as recorded in Portuguese documents would rule Kongo unopposed until 1567.

After the death of Nimi a Lukeni, his brother, Mbokani Mavinga, took over the throne and ruled until approximately 1467. He had two wives and nine children. His rule saw an expansion of the Kingdom of Kongo to include the neighbouring state of Loango and other areas now encompassed by the current Republic of Congo.

The Mwene Kongos often gave the governorships to members of their family or its clients. As this centralization increased, the allied provinces gradually lost influence until their powers were only symbolic, manifested in Mbata, once a co-kingdom, but by 1620 simply known by the title "Grandfather of the King of Kongo" (Nkaka'ndi a Mwene Kongo).[9][10]

The high concentration of population around Mbanza Kongo and its outskirts played a critical role in the centralization of Kongo. The capital was a densely settled area in an otherwise sparsely populated region where rural population densities probably did not exceed 5 persons per square kilometer. Early Portuguese travelers described Mbanza Kongo as a large city, the size of the Portuguese town of Évora as it was in 1491. By the end of the sixteenth century, Kongo's population was probably close to half a million people in a core region of some 130,000 square kilometers. By the early seventeenth century the city and its hinterland had a population of around 100,000, or one out of every five inhabitants in the Kingdom (according to baptismal statistics compiled by Jesuit priests). This concentration allowed resources, soldiers and surplus foodstuffs to be readily available at the request of the king. This made the king overwhelmingly powerful and caused the kingdom to become highly centralized.

By the time of the first recorded contact with the Europeans, the Kingdom of Kongo was a highly developed state at the center of an extensive trading network. Apart from natural resources and ivory, the country manufactured and traded copperware, ferrous metal goods, raffia cloth, and pottery. The Kongo people spoke in the Kikongo language. The eastern regions, especially that part known as the Seven Kingdoms of Kongo dia Nlaza (or in Kikongo Mumbwadi or "the Seven"), were particularly famous for the production of cloth
 
zarahan- aka Enrique Cardova
Member # 15718
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Good roundup Mena..

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mena7
Member # 20555
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38. Mansa Musa of Mali (ruled 1312-1337 AD)
Ruler of the richest country in the 14th century world


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Mansa Musa
King Mansa Musa’s astounding wealth came from his country Mali’s production of more than half the world’s gold and salt, Celebrity Net Worth said. A photograph of Mansa Musa on a map of North Africa circa 1375

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Emperor Mansa Musa

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Emperor Mansa Musa

Mansa Musa I ascended the throne of Mali in 1312 AD. He was, perhaps, the most colourful personality in West African history. Of this monarch, Dr DeGraft-Johnson, a Ghanaian historian, wrote that: “It was in 1324 … that the world awoke to the splendour and grandeur of Mali. There across the African desert, and making its way to Mecca, was a caravan of a size which had never before been seen, a caravan consisting of 60,000 men. They were Mansa Musa’s men, and Mansa Musa was with them. He was not going to war: he was merely going to worship at Mecca. The huge caravan included a personal retinue of 12,000 slaves, all dressed in brocade and Persian silk. Mansa Musa himself rode on horseback, and directly preceding him were 500 slaves, each carrying a staff of gold weighing about six pounds (500 mitkal). Then came Mansa Musa’s baggage-train of eighty camels, each carrying 300 pounds (three kantar) weight of gold dust. This imposing caravan made its way from Niani on the Upper Niger to Walata, then to Tuat, and then on to Cairo. Mansa Musa’s piety and open-handed generosity, the fine clothes and good behaviour of his followers, all quickly made a good impression. One might have thought that a pilgrimage to Mecca undertaken with such pomp and ceremony would have ulterior political motives, but no such motives have ever been adduced.” In Egypt, Musa spent so much money in gold that he devastated that nation’s economy. “For years after Mansa Musa’s visit [continues Professor DeGraft-Johnson], ordinary people in the streets of Cairo, Mecca, and Baghdad talked about this wonderful pilgrimage – a pilgrimage which led to the devaluation of gold in the Middle East for several years.”In a recent book, Cynthia Crossen, senior editor of the prestigious financial newspaper Wall Street Journal, wrote: “You’ve heard about the extraordinary wealth of Bill Gates, J. P. Morgan, and the sultan of Brunei, but have you heard of Mansa Musa, one of the richest men who ever lived?” Continuing this theme, Mrs Crossen comments that: “Neither producer nor inventor, Mansa Musa was an early broker, greasing the wheels of intercultural trade. He created wealth by making it possible for others to buy and sell”. Dr Davidson suggested that the rulers of Mali were “rumoured to have been the wealthiest m[e]n on the face of the earth”.

During his return journey from Mecca, Musa heard news that his army captured Gao in 1325. Sagmandia, one of his generals, led the victorious invasion. The captured city of Gao was a great prize. Al-Idrissi, the distinguished author mentioned earlier, described it as a “populous, unwalled, commercial and industrial town, in which were to be found the produce of all arts and trades necessary for its inhabitants”. Tim Insoll from St. John’s College, Cambridge University, carried out important excavations in Gao. Some of his finds were on display at the British Museum at the time of one of our visits. Particularly intriguing was an exhibit entitled: “Fragments of alabaster window surrounds and a piece of pink window glass, Gao 10th – 14th century.” Musa made a detour and visited the captured metropolis. In this city, he received the two sons of the Gao king as hostages, Ali Kolon and Suleiman Nar. He returned to Niani with the two boys and later educated them at his court.

Musa I embarked on a large building programme, raising mosques and universities in Timbuktu and Gao. In Niani, he built the Hall of Audience, a building communicated by an interior door to the royal palace. It was “an admirable Monument” surmounted by a dome, adorned with arabesques of striking colours. The windows of an upper floor were plated with wood and framed in silver foil, those of a lower floor were plated with wood, framed in gold. Like the Great Mosque, a splendid monument of Timbuktu, the Hall was built of cut stone. During this period, there was an extraordinary level of urban living. Sergio Domian, an Italian art and architecture scholar, wrote the following about this period: “Thus was laid the foundation of an urban civilisation. At the height of its power, Mali had at least 400 cities [sic], and the interior of the Niger Delta was very densely populated”.


37. Askia Mohammed I of Songhai (ruled 1493-1529, died in 1538 AD)
Emperor of the Songhai Empire of West Africa


Mausoleum of Askia the Great
Mausoleum of Askia the Great
Sonni Baru Dao, ruler of the Songhai Empire, was also a follower of a traditional African religion and rejected all attempts to convert him to Islam by Muslims in his empire. After several weeks of negotiations and no conversion, the Muslims resorted to battle. Backed by a large section of the army, the Muslims triumphed in April 1493. This brought Mohammed Touré, a former general, to lead the empire. He took the title ‘Askia’ and all those who followed him took the same dynastic title. A devout Muslim, Askia Mohammed I made a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1496. One thousand infantry and a cavalry detachment of 500 horsemen accompanied him. He also took 300,000 gold pieces. In Mecca, Askia met the Caliph of Egypt, the Pope of the Islamic church. Askia requested that the Caliph appoint him as his religious representative in West Africa. The Caliph agreed. Askia Mohammed returned to Gao in 1497, with a new title. He was now the Caliph of the Western Sudan, spiritual ruler of all the West African Muslims.The empire Askia inherited from the Sonni Dynasty was already massive, yet he expanded north, east and west by conquest. Ultimately it would cover an area about the same size as all of Europe. By 1514 his armies captured the Hausa Confederation of northern Nigeria. Next to capitulate was the city of Agades in Niger, and finally the regions to the far west of the empire around the Atlantic. As the kingdom grew into an empire, Askia Mohammed I came up with new methods of government, establishing a strongly centralised administration. Among the most important posts were the Minister of Treasury, the Minister of Tax Collection, the Minister of the Army and Navy, and the Minister of Trade and Industry. In some territories, the Askia allowed the regional kings to rule as they had before, just as long as they paid tribute. In other territories, the Askia created a parallel post to the local governor called the mondyo (i.e. inspector), who formed the official link to the imperial Songhai government. Askia Mohammed I died in 1538 and was buried in a Step Pyramid at Gao. He is fondly remembered as Askia the Great

http://www.whenweruled.com/?p=126

Celebrity Net Worth estimates the 14th-century king amassed $400 billion during his West African reign. Fourteen of the top 25 listed are Americans

King Mansa Musa wasn’t just the 1% of the 14th century — he may be the richest person of all time.

As the obscure ruler of West Africa’s Mali Empire, Musa amassed a jaw-dropping $400 billion during his reign from 1312 to 1337, according to a new inflation-adjusted list by celebritynetworth.com.

That outranks the Rothschild family, whose European banking dynasty landed them second on the list with $350 billion, and John D. Rockefeller, the American industrialist worth $340 billion.

PHOTOS: THE TOP 10 RICHEST PEOPLE OF ALL TIME

The 25 billionaires and families listed have made some megabucks, with a combined worth of $4.3 trillion.

As for Musa’s moolah, his “shocking wealth came from his country’s vast production of more than half the world’s supply of salt and gold,” according to the Celebrity Net Worth survey, which converted each billionaire’s fortunes into 2012 dollars.

Musa was a devout Muslim who spearheaded an extensive building program of palaces and mosques.

But his money was eventually lost after his death in 1337, when he was believed to be in his late 50s.

“His heirs were not able to fend off civil war and invading conquerors. Just two generations later, his world record net worth was gone,” Celebrity Net Worth said.

Of the list’s top 25, 14 are Americans, including Microsoft founder Bill Gates, whose inflation-adjusted worth is about $136 billion.

RICH18N_2_WEB
Jason DeCrow/AP

Mexican telecom tycoon , chairman of Grupo Carso SA de CV, is the richest living person in today’s dollars, according to Forbes.

Gates, who turns 57 this month, is currently the world’s second-richest living person in today’s dollars, behind Mexican telecom tycoon Carlos Slim, according to the latest Forbes ranking.

Slim ties for 22nd place on the Celebrity Net Worth list.

eortiz@nydailynews.com

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Celebrity Net Worth's list

1. Mansa Musa I, (Ruler of Malian Empire, 1280-1331) $400 billion

2. Rothschild family (banking dynasty, 1740- ) $350 billion

3. John D. Rockefeller (industrialist, 1839-1937) $340 billion

4. Andrew Carnegie (industrialist, 1835-1919) $310 billion

5. Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (last Emperor of Russia, 1868-1918) $300 billion

6. Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII (last ruler of Hyderabad, 1886-1967) $236 billion

7. William the Conqueror (King of England, 1028-1087) $229.5 billion

8. Moammar Khadafy (former Libyan leader, 1942-2011) $200 billion

9. Henry Ford (Ford Motor Company founder, 1863-1947) $199 billion

10. Cornelius Vanderbilt (industrialist, 1794-1877) $185 billion

11. Alan Rufus (Fighting companion of William the Conqueror, 1040-1093) $178.65

12. Bill Gates (Founder of Microsoft, 1955- ) $136 billion

13. William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey (Norman nobleman, ??-1088) $146.13 billion

14. John Jacob Astor (businessman, 1864-1912) $121 billion

15. Richard Fitzalan, 10th Earl of Arundel (English nobleman, 1306-1376) £118.6 billion

16. John of Gaunt (son of Edward III, 1330-1399) £110 billion

17. Stephen Girard (shipping and banking mogul, 1750-1831) $105 billion

18. Alexander Turney Stewart (entrepreneur, 1803-1876) $90 billion

19. Henry, 1st Duke of Lancaster (English noble, 1310-1361) $85.1 billion

20. Friedrich Weyerhaeuser (timber mogul, 1834-1914) $80 billion

21. Jay Gould (railroad tycoon, 1836-1892) $71 billion

22. Carlos Slim (business magnate, 1940- ) $68 billion (TIE)

22. Stephen Van Rensselaer (land owner, 1764- 1839) $68 billion (TIE)

23. Marshall Field (Marshall Field & Company founder, 1834-1906) $66 billion

24. Sam Walton (Walmart founder, 1918-1992) $65 billion

25. Warren Buffett (investor, 1930- ) $64 billion
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/king-mansa-musa-named-richest-history-article-1.1186261
 
mena7
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Songhai Emperor Sonni Ali Ber

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Songhai Emperor Sonni Ali Ber

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Songhai Emperor Sonni Ali Ber

In the sixteenth century the Songhay land awoke. A marvelous growth of civilization mounted there in the heart of the Black Continent. And this civilization was not imposed by circumstances, nor by an invader, as is often the case even in our day. It was desired, called forth, introduced and propagated by a man of the Negro race. —Félix Dubois, Tombouctou, la mystérieuse - See more at: http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/#sthash.sStal2dg.dpuf

Once again like Tenkhamenin of Ghana and Mansa Musa of Mali, a king of great courage and military prowess arose in the large, semi-arid Sahel of West Africa and defeated the reigning empire. Songhai empire depended on mainly on trade in salt and gold. Under the leadership of Songhai conqueror, considerable improvement has been made since the reign of Mali Kings. Now a system of weights and measures set a uniform value on gold and salt.This development eased tensions between merchants, making trade agreements smoother. The imaginative and powerful King of courage, Sunni Ali Ber (The Great) who conquered Mali and brought about this significant improvements.
Sonni Ali, also known as Sunni Ali Ber or “Sunni Ali”, was born Ali Kolon. He reigned from about 1464 to 1492. Sunni Ali was the first king of the Songhai Empire, located in west Africa and the 15th ruler of the Sonni dynasty. Sunni Ali began as a common soldier in the army of KanKan Musa, Mandingo ruler of the Mellistine Empire, into which he had been forcibly enlisted, after the defeat and en- slavement of his people, the Songhais. Forced even to fight his own people, Sunni Ali was overcome with rage at the cruelties of the Mellestine emperor and swore that one day, he would take up arms to free his people. As for the empire of KanKan Musa, it exceeded in wealth and magnificence, anything he had ever imagined, and yet, common soldier that we was, Sunni Ali dared to believe that some day it should be his. Sunni Ali, together with his brother Selmar Nar, laid careful plans for escape.
He rallied his people and carefully built a fleet to patrol the Niger river. During Sonni Ali’s reign, Songhai surpassed the height of the Mali Empire, engulfing areas under the Mali Empire (and the Ghana Empire before it) - See more at: http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/#sthash.sStal2dg.dpuf

In 1468, King Sunni Ali saw Arab Muslims as intruders to West Africa and he sought return the people to their old traditions. He defeated the Mandinka people, allies of Arab Muslims, Timbuktu and went on from town to town subduing the Malian army which included the Berbers in the Upper Nile. Ali also drove out the Tuareg, he plundered their city and murdered many of its inhabitants, presumably in retaliation for the Muslim leader’s failure to provide him with promised transport across the Niger River. Sonni ‘Ali’s sack of Timbuktu, especially those of the Sankore region who were associated with the Tuareg whom Ali expelled to gain control of the town, established his reputation in the history of The Sudan as a cruel and capricious tyrant, alternately generous and savage. The 16th-century Muslim Sudanese historian ‘Abd ar-Rahman as-Sadi, in the historical chronicle Tar’ikh as-Sudan (“History of the Sudan”), related several instances of Sonni ‘Ali’s summary executions of friend and foe alike. The antipathy of Muslim scholars toward Sonni ‘Ali may be attributed in part to what they regarded as his rather unorthodox observance of Islam. He apparently was against the performance of Muslim rites and had firm belief in those of the traditional Songhai religion - See more at: http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/#sthash.sStal2dg.dpuf

Aware of the benefits of controlling Sudanese commerce, Sonni ‘Ali turned to the conquest of the wealthy trading city of Jenne (now Djenné) on the Bani River near its confluence with the Niger. His seven-year siege of the city resulted in its conquest in 1473. Sonni ‘Ali spent most of his reign in the field repulsing attacks on his empire, these coming especially from the Mossi, the Fulani of the Dendi region, and the Tuareg
Sunni Ali Ber regarded the Mossi as a serious threat to his burgeoning power. In 1480, using his fine strategic sense and his effective use of cavalry, he encountered the Mossi after they had sacked Walata. He hounded them throughout the Western Sudan and succeeded in driving them back to their home. Next, he defeated the Fulani of Massina. Sunni Ali Ber had an intense hatred for them as he did all foreigners. In 1483, he went to war with the Mossi, repulsing them again and finally ending the Mossi threat in 1486. This conquest enabled him to assimilate the Dendi area, and to discourage Tuareg raiding.
But Songhai was entering the midnight of West African imperial power, the daylight has steadily declined in the warfare between states, and even with Sunni Ali Ber`s remarkable splash of brilliance, the stage has been set for the end of the empire. Historian Felix Dubois made the following statement about Sunni Ali: “He was a soldier only, and a true Black soldier who marches from conquest to conquest, absorbing all the population by war without thinking to organize and create durable work….his lance travels from east to west, tracing the grandeur of the Songhay, unknown to him, it is true. But the task is being prepared for an organizer that is to come very rapidly, to lead the Songhays to the heights of splendor, power and prosperity.”
Although it is purported that he ruled from horseback, Sunni Ali Ber did establish an effective system of government. He turned the conquered states into provinces, with a combination of his choices and extant rulers as governors. Consequently, Songhai became a centralized state dominating the entire Niger region. Special organizational arrangements were made for Timbuktu and other Muslim provinces. Additionally, he installed a commander-in-chief for his navy.
- See more at: http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/#sthash.sStal2dg.dpuf

In 1492, Sunni Ali drowned while returning home after a victory against the Fulani of Gurma. He was mummified after his death and thus followed very ancient African traditions. In the same year Christopher Columbus, harbinger of the Atlantic slave trade, set sail for the New World. According to the Tarikh al-Sudan, “Ali drowned while crossing the river Niger.” Oral tradition believes he was killed by his sister’s son, Askia Muhammad Ture aka Mamari. He was succeeded by his son, Sonni Baru, who was challenged by Askia because Baru was not seen as a faithful Muslim. Askia succeed the throne. According to the Tarikh al-Sudan it is believed that this action caused Sonni Ali’s sister to shout out “Askia!”(forceful one), at the news of this take over - See more at: http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/#sthash.sStal2dg.dpuf

http://www.exposingblacktruth.org/sonni-ali-ber-the-worlds-famous-founder-of-pre-colonial-songhay-empire-of-west-africa-and-the-last-king-to-stand-for-west-african-unity-against-is lamic-invasion/

10. Sonni Ali Ber of Songhai (ruled 1464-1492 AD)
World famous founder of the Songhai Empire of West Africa


In 1464 Sonni Ali, the eighteenth ruler of his dynasty, became ruler of the Songhai kingdom. His first notable achievement was the capture of the Malian city of Timbuktu in 1469, with its world famous University of Sankore Mosque. Djenné was the next city to fall after a siege lasting over seven years. An even bigger prize, it had international trading links, a university, and also the most brilliant architecture in the region. He took it in around 1473. To the south, lay the kingdoms of the Mossi, an enemy of the Songhai. In 1480 they launched a raid on the Songhai city of Walata. They besieged the city for a month leading Walata to capitulate. The victorious Mossi seized people and booty. In 1483 Sonni Ali’s army successfully drove this menace from the kingdom. Sonni Ali established the Songhai state as the third great West African Empire in this region, after Ancient Ghana and Mali. He became a world famous leader of this time, taking over most of the old Malian Empire. After a distinguished career, he died in November 1492, killed in a military campaign. He was mummified after his death and thus followed very ancient African traditions

Sonni Ali, also known as Sunni Ali Ber or "Sunni Ali", was born Ali Kolon.[1][2] He reigned from about 1464 to 1492. Sunni Ali was the first king of the Songhai Empire, located in west Africa and the 15th ruler of the Sonni dynasty. Under Sunni Ali's infantry and cavalry many cities were captured and then fortified, such as Timbuktu (captured in 1468) and Djenné (captured in 1475). Sonni conducted a repressive policy against the scholars of Timbuktu, especially those of the Sankore region who were associated with the Tuareg whom Ali expelled to gain control of the town.

Sonni Ali organized a fleet to patrol the Niger river. During his reign, Songhai surpassed the height of the Mali Empire, engulfing areas under the Mali Empire (and the Ghana Empire before it). His death, in late 1492, is a matter of conjecture. According to the Tarikh al-Sudan, Ali drowned while crossing the river Niger.[3] Oral tradition believes he was killed by his sister's son, Askia Muhammad Ture.[4][5] He was succeeded by his son, Sonni Baru, who was challenged by Askia because Baru was not seen as a faithful Muslim.[6] Askia succeed the throne. According to the Tarikh al-Sudan it is believed that this action caused Sonni Ali's sister to shout out "Askia!"(forceful one), at the news of this take over.[7]

Sonni Ali ruled over both urban Muslims and rural non-Muslims at a time when the traditional co-existence of different beliefs was being challenged. His adherence to African animism while also professing Islam leads some writers to describe him as outwardly or nominally Muslim.[8] This perspectively is entirely rejected by some scholars (such as Muhammad Shareef) who claim that the debate of fusion of Islam and indigenous African religions is not peculiar, unique or in any way diminishes someone's claim to being a Muslim. Owen Alik Shahadah claims that it is problematic for historians to become theologians and narrow the definition of Islam to support their 21st century politics



. Professor Ahmed Baba of Songhai (died 1627 AD)
Greatest scholar of the sixteenth century world


The Songhai Empire ruled about two thirds of West Africa, including the lands now called Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, Senegal, Gambia, Northern Nigeria and Niger. When the Empire collapsed, due to an Arab and European invasion in 1591 AD, its intelligentsia were arrested by the conquerors and dragged in chains across the Sahara. One of these scholars was Professor Ahmed Baba. The author of 60 books, Professor Baba enjoyed a very high reputation. Amongst the Songhai, he was known as “The Unique Pearl of his Time”. In a Moroccan text from the period, the praise for him was even more gushing. He is described as “the imam, the erudite, the high-minded, the eminent among scholars, Abu l-Abbas Ahmed Baba.”

In Morocco, the Arab scholars petitioned to have him released from jail. He was released a year after his arrival on 9 May 1596. Major Dubois, a French author, narrates that: “All the believers were greatly pleased with his release, and he was conducted in triumph from his prison to the principal mosque of Marrakech. A great many of the learned men urged him to open a course of instruction. His first thought was to refuse, but overcome by their persistence he accepted a post in the Mosque of the Kerifs and taught rhetoric, law, and theology. An extraordinary number of pupils attended his lectures, and questions of the gravest importance were submitted to him by the magristracy, his decision always being treated as final.”

Despite this adulation, Baba was careful to credit his learning to the Almighty and thus maintained his modesty. A Moroccan source tells of an audience he obtained with Al Mansur. It appears that the scholar gave the sultan something of a dressing down. Baba complained about the sultan’s lack of manners, his ill treatment received during his original arrest, the sacking of his private library of 1600 books, and the destruction of the Songhai Empire. We are told by the Moroccan author that Al Mansur “being unable to reply to [any of] this, put an end to the audience.”

The professor was detained in Morocco for a total of 12 years. Eventually he received permission from Al Mansur’s successor to return to Songhai. Just before his departure across the desert, he vowed in the presence of the leading scholars of Marrakesh who had gathered to give him a send off, “May God never bring me back to this meeting, nor make me return to this country!” He returned to a devastated Timbuktu and died there in 1627
 
mena7
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40. Ngola Ann Nzinga of Ndongo (ruled 1623-1663 AD)
Angolan Queen who defended against the Slave Trade

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Queen Nzinga

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Queen Nzinga

From the fifteenth century AD onwards, West Africa began to face the rigours of the Slave Trade. The challenge first came from the Portuguese. Later challenges came from other European peoples. In the region now known as Angola, there was a kingdom called Ndongo. Kabasa was its capital city. Portuguese traders exerted a great pressure on this kingdom. After 1608 their army commander-in-chief instituted a new policy of repression. Bento Cardoso devised a system whereby every Ndongo notable would be owned by a Portuguese official and was responsible for delivering a certain quantity of slaves to that official. Should the Ndongo notable fail therein, he too would be enslaved. Over a hundred notables were enslaved in a single year. In addition, the Portuguese killed a further one hundred. Even the ruler of Ndongo, himself a slave trader, resisted the aggression. War dragged on for years but the Portuguese were forced to sue for peace.

In 1622 Ann Nzinga, the Ndongo royal sister, attended a peace conference with the Portuguese convened in the coastal city of Luanda. She demanded (1) that the Portuguese evacuate Kabasa, the Ndongo capital; (2) that the Portuguese wage war on the Jaga, an African people much involved in the Slave Trade; (3) all Ndongo notables who had become vassals of the Portuguese must return to their former loyalty to the Ndongo crown. In return, Nzinga promised to hand over Portuguese prisoners of war. The provisions of the treaty were designed to end all fighting in the region, but alas the Portuguese breached it almost immediately by invading Kongo, the kingdom to the north.

In 1623 Ann Nzinga officially became the Ngola (which means King) [sic], and in this capacity made the regional alliances necessary to fight the Portuguese. She even made common cause with the Jaga. Ndongo was declared a free country the following year. All slaves entering the country were legally declared to be free. By 1629 her forces and allies captured Matamba, the neighbouring state to the east. Incidentally, this state had a tradition of being ruled by females. This too was declared a free country. The fragile alliance with the Jaga ended when their ruler betrayed her and attacked Matamba. Fortunately, dissension among the Europeans – the Dutch were encroaching on Portugal’s share of the slave trade – created an opportunity for Nzinga. She established a strategic alliance with the Dutch, pitting them against the Portuguese. After the Portuguese defeated the Dutch, Nzinga retreated to the hills of Matamba, where she established a formidable resistance movement against the Portuguese. One key strategy was to get Black slave soldiers to desert to her side. She promised them land and freedom. She was the only African leader in history known to have attempted this. In 1641 Garcia II, a vigorous king, emerged in Kongo, to the north. He made alliances with the Dutch to fight Portuguese aggression. His death in 1661 ended the great era of Kongolese culture. In Ndongo, the death of Nzinga in 1663 marked a turning point. Her extraordinary and brilliant reign only delayed the inevitable

http://www.whenweruled.com/?p=131


Queen Nzinga (1583-1663)

Nzinga Meeting with Portuguese Governor Joao Corria de Sousa, 1622

Image Ownership: Public Domain


Queen Nzinga (Nzinga Mbande), the monarch of the Mbundu people, was a resilient leader who fought against the Portuguese and their expanding slave trade in Central Africa.

During the late 16th Century, the French and the English threatened the Portuguese near monopoly on the sources of slaves along the West African coast, forcing it to seek new areas for exploitation. By 1580 they had already established a trading relationship with Afonso I in the nearby Kongo Kingdom. They then turned to Angola, south of the Kongo.

The Portuguese established a fort and settlement at Luanda in 1617, encroaching on Mbundu land. In 1622 they invited Ngola (King) Mbande to attend a peace conference there to end the hostilities with the Mbundu. Mbande sent his sister, Nzinga, to represent him in a meeting with Portuguese Governor Joao Corria de Sousa. Nzinga was aware of her diplomatically awkward position. She knew of events in the Kongo which had led to Portuguese domination of the nominally independent nation. She also recognized, however, that to refuse to trade with the Portuguese would remove a potential ally and the major source of guns for her own state.

In the first of a series of meetings Nzinga sought to establish her equality with the representative of the Portugal crown. Noting that the only chair in the room belonged to Governor Corria, she immediately motioned to one of her assistants who fell on her hands and knees and served as a chair for Nzinga for the rest of the meeting.

Despite that display, Nzinga made accommodations with the Portuguese. She converted to Christianity and adopted the name Dona Anna de Souza. She was baptized in honor of the governor's wife who also became her godmother. Shortly afterwards Nzinga urged a reluctant Ngola Mbande to order the conversion of his people to Christianity.

In 1626 Nzinga became Queen of the Mbundu when her brother committed suicide in the face of rising Portuguese demands for slave trade concessions. Nzinga, however, refused to allow them to control her nation. In 1627, after forming alliances with former rival states, she led her army against the Portuguese, initiating a thirty year war against them. She exploited European rivalry by forging an alliance with the Dutch who had conquered Luanda in 1641. With their help, Nzinga defeated a Portuguese army in 1647. When the Dutch were in turn defeated by the Portuguese the following year and withdrew from Central Africa, Nzinga continued her struggle against the Portuguese. Now in her 60s she still personally led troops in battle. She also orchestrated guerilla attacks on the Portuguese which would continue long after her death and inspire the ultimately successful 20th Century armed resistance against the Portuguese that resulted in independent Angola in 1975.

Despite repeated attempts by the Portuguese and their allies to capture or kill Queen Nzinga, she died peacefully in her eighties on December 17, 1663
- See more at: http://www.blackpast.org/gah/queen-nzinga-1583-1663#sthash.GViW1o36.dpuf


50. Prophetess Kimpa Vita of Kongo (lived 1682-1706)
Kongolese founder of Black Liberation Theology


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Prophetess Kimpa Vita

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Prophetess Kimpa Vita

Mena: I love Kimpa Vita.

Towards the end of the seventeenth century AD, both the combined states of Ndongo and Matamba, and also Kongo, fell victim to European predator activities where “executions, treachery, robbery, and violence became the order of the day.” Even under these trying circumstances, a great woman emerged. Kimpa Vita also called Dona Beatriz continued the resistance against the Portuguese slave traders. She was a Kongolese aristocrat born in 1682. By 1704 she began to get national recognition as a prophetess. Though a Christian, she led an interpretation of Christian doctrine that her opponents called the Antonian Heresy. This theology created a national religion in Kongo that owed little to the Church of Rome. Vita preached that (1) Kongo was the Holy Land described in the Bible; (2) The Kongolese capital, Mbanza Kongo, is the real site of Bethlehem; (3) Christ and all the other saints were Black; (4) Heaven was for Africans only; and (5) The White church was the anti-Christ. Thus, she called on Africans not to listen to White missionaries. Her political programme was to find the new king of Kongo who would lead the next golden age of Kongo civilisation. Unfortunately, it was not to be. She was eventually captured and executed by the Portuguese in 1706.

http://www.whenweruled.com/?p=151
 
mena7
Member # 20555
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[IMG]http://www.jamtan.com/jamtan/admin/images3/xxxxxxxxx.jpg[/IMG

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Mai Idriss Alooma

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Mai Idriss Alooma

27. Mai Idris Alooma of Kanem-Borno (ruled 1564-96 AD)
Greatest ruler of the Central African state of Kanem-Borno


Mai (i.e. King) Idris Alooma (1564-96) was a most successful politician of the period who gained considerable international prestige. Mahmud Kati, the great Songhai historian, wrote that: “The mass of our contemporaries hold that there are four Sultans not counting the supreme Sultan [the Sultan of Constantinople] to wit – The Sultan of Baghdad, the Sultan of Cairo, the Sultan of Bornu [sic] and the Sultan of Melli [i.e. Mali]”. Dr Heinrich Barth, the nineteenth century German traveller, described Idris as “an excellent prince, uniting in himself the most opposite qualities: warlike energy, combined with mildness and intelligence; courage, with circumspection and patience; severity with pious feelings”.

His military prowess was outstanding with armies, possibly the first in Africa, to have muskets. Acquiring them from the Turkish Empire, “[n]orth, south, east, and west he carried his conquering arms”, says Lady Lugard. “To give a list of the many [peoples] that he subdued could only weary the reader”. Imam Ahmad, the royal chronicler and aide, wrote a detailed account of Idris’ campaigns. Part of his first hand report reads as follows: “‘Abd ul Jalil ibn Bi fled and escaped, fearing our army. He had left his wife, the daughter of Yarima, in his house, turning from her when he saw the dust of our army, rising to the skies. For he was certain that the safety of a man himself is better for him than the safety of his wife. So he fled, deserting his wife, since personal necessity is more compelling than the lack of a wife, as the author of the book Ifrikiya has said.”

Idris reformed and standardised the judiciary by establishing a system of Islamic courts. He himself ruled according to Islamic political theory, taking a stand against, among other things, immorality in the capital. Oliver and Atmore wrote that: “[H]e presided over a court famous for the high standard of its legal and theological disputations”. Like his Songhai contemporaries, he was a patron of learning, encouraging scholars from many other African countries to take up residence in Borno. He improved navigation on the Yobe River. He commissioned the building of longer, flat-bottomed boats initially for his navy. For land transportation, he imported a much greater number of camels replacing the dependence on mules, oxen and donkeys. The great Mai was also a builder, raising new brick mosques in the cities that replaced the older buildings. He also founded a hostel in Mecca for Borno pilgrims. Following the fall of Songhai in 1591, the great Mai became the undisputed champion of the Muslims in the region. The empire became the Borno Caliphate. Phillip Koslow, a modern historian, declared that: “His contemporary, Elizabeth I of England, a shrewd and strong-willed monarch who gave her name to an age and has been repeatedly celebrated in books and films, could hardly have claimed greater achievements in war, administration or diplomacy.”

http://www.whenweruled.com/?p=107

http://www.egyptsearch.com/forums/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=006597

Ask most folk, Black or White, if they've ever heard of the Kanem-Bornu Empire that existed in West Africa and Central Africa from the 9th century A.D. to the 19th century A.D. (so roughly from around 800AD-1800AD). This empire had periods of success and failure and there's still not a ton known about it. One of its greatest known leaders was Mai Idris Alooma who ruled from 1564-1596 (Mai means King). He was a most successful politician of the period who gained considerable international prestige. Mahmud Kati, the great Songhai historian, wrote that: "The mass of our contemporaries hold that there are four Sultans not counting the supreme Sultan [the Sultan of Constantinople] to wit - The Sultan of Baghdad, the Sultan of Cairo, the Sultan of Bornu [sic] and the Sultan of Melli [i.e. Mali]". Dr Heinrich Barth, the nineteenth century German traveller, described Idris as "an excellent prince, uniting in himself the most opposite qualities: warlike energy, combined with mildness and intelligence; courage, with circumspection and patience; severity with pious feelings".

His military prowess was outstanding with armies, possibly the first in Africa, to have muskets. Acquiring them from the Turkish Empire, "[n]orth, south, east, and west he carried his conquering arms", says Lady Lugard. "To give a list of the many [peoples] that he subdued could only weary the reader". Imam Ahmad, the royal chronicler and aide, wrote a detailed account of Idris' campaigns. Part of his first hand report reads as follows: "'Abd ul Jalil ibn Bi fled and escaped, fearing our army. He had left his wife, the daughter of Yarima, in his house, turning from her when he saw the dust of our army, rising to the skies. For he was certain that the safety of a man himself is better for him than the safety of his wife. So he fled, deserting his wife, since personal necessity is more compelling than the lack of a wife, as the author of the book Ifrikiya has said."

Idris reformed and standardised the judiciary by establishing a system of Islamic courts. He himself ruled according to Islamic political theory, taking a stand against, among other things, immorality in the capital. Oliver and Atmore wrote that: "[H]e presided over a court famous for the high standard of its legal and theological disputations". Like his Songhai contemporaries, he was a patron of learning, encouraging scholars from many other African countries to take up residence in Borno. He improved navigation on the Yobe River. He commissioned the building of longer, flat-bottomed boats initially for his navy. For land transportation, he imported a much greater number of camels replacing the dependence on mules, oxen and donkeys. The great Mai was also a builder, raising new brick mosques in the cities that replaced the older buildings. He also founded a hostel in Mecca for Borno pilgrims. Following the fall of Songhai in 1591, the great Mai became the undisputed champion of the Muslims in the region. The empire became the Borno Caliphate. Phillip Koslow, a modern historian, declared that: "His contemporary, Elizabeth I of England, a shrewd and strong-willed monarch who gave her name to an age and has been repeatedly celebrated in books and films, could hardly have claimed greater achievements in war, administration or diplomacy."

What's interesting about this above is how it is mentioned there are 4 Sultans of the Islamic world during that time period (outside of the Supreme Sultan...the Sultan of Sultans). Baghdad and Cairo being on that list is to be expected. But Mahmud Kati, the Songhai historian, also mentions the sultans of Mali and Bornu. This is major, but often looked over by those who take the time to study African history. It would mean Black Africans had equal power and authority in the Muslim world than what is typically acknowledged. Many people like to bring up the fact that Muslims...just like Europeans also bought slaves. And that the trans-Saharan slave trade was often just as brutal as the trans-Atlantic slave trade. While, this may be true...it's not close to being the entire story. To study African history is to accept that powerful African kingdoms and city-states during the Early Modern Era (Renassiance Period in Europe) like Great Benin, Dahomy, Kanem-Bornu, Kongo all sold slaves to both Muslims and Europeans. This was a very profitable, but highly destructive business and further research may show that had these African nations not depleted their own lands of vital members...they may not have gone into decline and would have progressed along with the Europeans.

All of the information in this thread comes from a highly underrated book called When We Ruled by Robin Walker. It's almost 700 pages long and filled with priceless information you won't find anywhere on the internet. It touches on every region and every nation.

By the 17th century (now that Songhai had fallen), Kanem-Bornu was the leading Islamic presence in Black Africa...it was now a Caliphate that represented all of Africa. It's capital city was called Ngazargamu and was one of the largest cities on Earth (it may have been THE largest and if not definitely in the Top 3). By 1658 the metropolis, according to architectural scholar Susan Denyer, housed "about a quarter of a million people". It had 660 streets. Many were wide and unbending, reflective of town planning. The dendel, of high streets, were lined on both sides by trees that offered shade. These buildings must have been erected on an impressive scale. "Heinrich Barth, who inspected the remains of these walls during the 19th century declared that their worksmanship was equal in quality to the finest masonry he had seen in Europe."

It kinda makes me mad when I read from uneducated people that Great Zimbabwe is the only stone building in "Sub-Sarahan Africa." It's flat out false, there's just too much evidence that pre-colonial Africa was teeming with construction and development that would have even rivaled Europe.

Know your Black royalty, they once existed just like Europeans royals. They ruled over massive lands and commanded strong, central armies. Sadly, these kingdoms fell into decline and the scramble for Africa and colonialism in the 1700s and 1800s saw a lot of history destroyed, stolen, or lost. Almost all knowledge of these Black royals (who ruled in lands stretching from West Africa to East Africa) is gone. What we know is only bits and pieces of information. That's why it's important that African archeology is funded more.

]
 
zarahan- aka Enrique Cardova
Member # 15718
 - posted
It kinda makes me mad when I read from uneducated people that Great Zimbabwe is the only stone building in "Sub-Sarahan Africa." It's flat out false, there's just too much evidence that pre-colonial Africa was teeming with construction and development that would have even rivaled Europe

Indeed. But some are educated, including assorted "biodiversity"
or "HBD" propagandists who deliberately want to distort
the history of African peoples. Speaking of stone construction,
I debunked one of these prominent propagandists, pointing out that
one of the largest, arguably the largest single piece of worked stone,
was carved and established in "Sub-Saharan" Africa.

(QUOTE: "The early Askumites built in stone. They
erected massive carved monoliths over the graves
of their leaders (one was 33 meters long and
weighed over 700 tonnes, arguably the largest
single piece of worked stone ever hewn."

--John Reader, 1999. Africa, A Biography of the Continent pg 208
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
11. Kentake Amanirenas of Kush (flourished c.24 BC)
Defender of the Sudanese Kingdom of Kush against Roman aggression

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Queen Amenirdis


The Roman conquest of Egypt in 30 BC brought a new challenge to the Kingdom of Kush, to the south. Augustus Caesar, the Roman emperor, threatened an invasion, following his Egyptian campaign. According to Strabo, a famous geographer, sometime between 29 and 24 BC the conflict with Kush began. Kentake (i.e. Queen-Mother) Amanirenas, the Kushite ruler, gave the order to march into Egypt and attack the invaders. Akindad led the campaigns against the Roman armies of Augustus. The Kushites sacked Aswan with an army of 30,000 men and they destroyed the statues of Caesar in Elephantine. The Romans, under Petronius, counterattacked. Though described as a strong and fortified city, they captured Qasr Ibrim in 23 BC after their first assault. The Romans invaded as far as Napata and sacked it, though Amanirenas evaded their clutches. Petronius returned to Alexandria with prisoners and booty leaving behind a garrison in Lower Nubia. Amenirenas ordered her armies to march a second time with the aim of seizing the Roman garrison. This time, however, a standoff with Petronius was reached without fighting. The Roman army retired to Egypt and withdrew their fort declaring Pax Romana (peace). In fact, the full extent of the Roman humiliation has yet to be disclosed since the relevant Kushite account of the affair has yet to be published. The Kushite account of this encounter, written in the Meroïtic script, cannot as yet be fully understood

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(also spelled Amanirena) was a queen of the Meroitic Kingdom of Kush.

Her full name and title was Amnirense qore li kdwe li ("Ameniras, Qore and Kandake").[1]

She reigned from about 40 BCE to 10 BCE. She is one of the most famous kandakes, because of her role leading Kushite armies against the Romans from in a war that lasted five years, from 27 BCE to 22 BCE. After an initial victory when the Kushites attacked Roman Egypt, they were driven out of Egypt by Gaius_Petronius and the Romans established a new frontier at Hiere Sycaminos (Maharraqa).[2][3] Amanirenas was described as brave, and blind in one eye.

Meroitic inscriptions give Amanirenas the title of qore as well as kandake suggesting that she was a ruling queen. She is usually considered to be the queen referred to as "Candace" in Strabo's account of the Meroitic war against the Roman Empire. Her name is associated with those of Teriteqas and Akinidad. The scheme first proposed by Hintze suggests that King Teriteqas died shortly after the beginning of the war. She was succeeded by Akinidad (possibly the son of Teriteqas) who continued the campaign with his mother Amanirenas. Akinidad died at Dakka c.24BC

Roman Conflict[edit]

The First Battles[edit]

When Aelius Gallus, the Prefect, or chief magistrate, of Egypt, was absent on a campaign in Arabia in 24 BC, the Kushites launched an attack on Egypt. Amanirenas and Akinidad defeated Roman forces at Syene and Philae, and drove the Jews from Elephantine Island.[5] They returned to Kush with prisoners and loot, including several statues of Emperor Augustus (Jameson 1986: 71-84).

Petronius Nubian Campaign[edit]

The Kushites were driven out of Syrene later in the year by Publius Petronius, who now held the office of Roman Prefect in Egypt. According to a detailed report made by Strabo (17: 53-54), the Roman troops advanced far into Kush, and finally reached Napata. Although they withdrew again to the north they left behind a garrison in Qasr Ibrim (Primis), which now became the border of the Roman Empire. The Kushites made a renewed attempt to seize Primis, but Petronius forestalled this attempt.[citation needed]

Following this event, negotiations began.[2][3] The Meroites sent mediators to Augustus, who was then in Samos, and in the year 21/20 BC a peace treaty was conducted. It was strikingly favorable to the Meroites in that the southern part of the Thirty-Mile Strip, including Primis, was evacuated by the Romans, and the Meroites were exempted from having to pay tribute to the Emperor. On the other hand, the Romans continued to occupy the Dodekashoinos as a military border zone, so the frontier now lay near Hiere Sycaminos (Maharraqa).[citation needed]

This arrangement continued until the end of the third century AD, with relations between Meroe and Roman Egypt remaining generally peaceful during this time (Hintze 1978 :100). However, the kingdom of Kush had begun to fade as a power by the first or second century AD, partly as a result of the Roman war
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
48. Yusuf ibn Tashifin of the Almoravides (ruled c.1061-1106)
Founder of the Almoravid Dynasty that ruled in Africa and Spain


Yusuf Ibn Tashifin
Yusuf Ibn Tashifin
Sometime in the latter half of 1082 AD hundreds of Moors and Arabs streamed into Africa, fleeing the campaigns of the Christians. In the following year, Al-Mutammed, the governor of Seville, joined them. Visiting Yusuf, he begged him to assist the Muslims in Spain against the Christian onslaught. Yusuf responded. He raised an army that was said to have included every ethnic group in the western Sahara desert and sent them across the sea into Spain. Armed with Indian swords and mounted on camels, the African army faced the Christians at Zalakah in 1086. They triumphed and pushed the Christians out of southern Spain.

In time Yusuf’s forces seized Seville and dethroned its Islamic rulers. Apparently they had become “sunk in pleasure and sloth”. The Almoravid Empire had a court in Africa centred in Marrakech and a court in Spain centred in Seville. This, according to Lady Lugard, “established once more a supreme sultan upon the throne of Andalusia”. Furthermore, Yusuf’s conquest and “the dynasty which he founded must be regarded as an African conquest and an African dynasty”. Incidentally, there is a “traditional” image of Yusuf that appears on the Catalan Atlas, a famous Spanish map of a slightly later period. Not only is he clearly depicted as a Negro but he is portrayed as darker in complexion than Mansa Musa, incongruously drawn on the same map. The territory ruled by the Almoravides in Africa and Spain was extensive. Under their sway were the lands of Senegal, Morocco, Algeria and Spain. It was a larger area than that of Western Europe. Thirteen kings acknowledged the overlordship of Yusuf.

In Africa Yusuf had great monuments built. Three great mosques date from his time, the mosque of Tlemcen, the mosque of Nedroma, and the mosque of Algiers. He also built an imposing stone fortress in Marrakech when other buildings at the time were of clay. Natascha Kubisch notes that: “[He] founded the city of Marrakech in 1062 and laid out the great palm grove, but then handed over the further developments of the city to his son. Marrakech remained the capital of the empire under the Almohads and is one of the four royal cities of Morocco, alongside Rabat, Fez and Meknes. It is still a fascinating city today because of its African character and its surviving medieval buildings.”

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Yusuf Ibn Tashifin riding a camel and Emperor ansa Musa of Mali.

http://www.whenweruled.com/?p=146
 
the lioness,
Member # 17353
 - posted
Tukuler thinks that website you lined "when we ruled" is wrong that the camel rider is it not Yusuf Ibn Tashifin
but instead "bubeder" as the text says, so he thinks it means Abu Bakr ibn Umar,
a chieftain of the Lamtuna Berbers of the western Sahara, and commander of the Almoravids from 1056 until his death.
theory: Bubeder = Bubacar = abu Bakr
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Abu Bakr placed his cousin Yusuf ibn Tashfin in charge of Aghmat, and assigned him the responsibility of maintaining the front against the Zenata to the north. In a series of campaigns through the 1060s, while Abu Bakr held court in Marrakesh, Yusuf directed Almoravid armies against northern Morocco, reducing Zenata strongholds one by one. In 1070, the Moroccan capital of Fez finally fell to the Almoravids.
 
Tukuler
Member # 19944
 - posted
I guess the deal with that website
is after reading textual descriptions
of Tashfin they jumped to the conclusion
he was the black skinned Mulithamuni or
maybe misread something I wrote playing
the one beside the other.

But there is no doubt or thinking on
my part in simply xlating what the
mapmaker wrote, that the guy is
"King Bubacar."

The argument was fully fleshed elsewhere
so I'm not rehearsing it here again for
you to run off again to some anonymous
so-called authority -- who won't come
here and reason with me -- only to find
they too in the end make the self same
identification.
 
kdolo
Member # 21830
 - posted
Were the Almoravids Black Africans ?

and are they the "Moors" or "Moors ?
 
Brada-Anansi
Member # 16371
 - posted
Most of them would be both African and Black,they were formed as a body on the river Senegal.
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
.Mansa Abubakari II of Mali (flourished 1311 AD)
Malian king who sailed to America 181 years before Columbus


An Egyptian scholar, Ibn Fadl Al-Umari, published Masalik ab Absar fi Mamalik al Amsar in Cairo around 1342. In the tenth chapter of this work, there is an account of two large maritime voyages ordered by the predecessor of Mansa Musa, a king who inherited the Malian throne in 1312. This mariner king is not named by Al-Umari, but modern writers identify him as Mansa Abubakari II. According to Al-Umari, this king launched two hundred ships filled with men and a further two hundred ships amply stocked with food, gold and water to last for two years. The ruler sent them with a mission to explore the extremity of the Atlantic Ocean. In time, one ship returned. Its captain told the Malian king of his adventures. “Prince,” he said, “we sailed for a long time, up to the moment when we encountered in mid-ocean something like a river with a violent current. My ship was last. The others sailed on, and gradually each of them entered this place, they disappeared and did not come back. We did not know what had happened to them. As for me, I returned to where I was and did not enter the current.” The Mansa decided to see for himself. He had two thousand ships prepared, one thousand of which were equipped with provisions. They set sail across the Atlantic with a large party and never returned. Abubakari II left Mansa Musa I in charge of leading the empire.

This account implies that Malians visited the Americas in 1311. This was 181 years before Christopher Columbus “discovered” the continent. It is, of course, well known that Columbus himself was fully aware of this important fact. Columbus, to give just one example, reported that he acquired metal goods of West African manufacture from the Native Americans. Other evidence of this African voyage comes from an analysis of maps. Old maps of the Mexico region, drawn by Europeans, show that the Malians renamed places in the region after themselves. Names such as Mandinga Port, Mandinga Bay and Sierre de Mali exist as place names. Moreover, two skeletons of Negro males have been recovered from a grave in Hull Bay near the Danish Virgin Islands. Dated at 1250 AD, this is only 61 years away from the period of the proposed Malian visit. In addition, an old inscription was discovered at the bottom of a waterfall in the Reef Bay Valley, not too far from the African skeletons. This inscription was written in an old African script called Tifinagh. Originally of ancient Libyan origin, a Berber group in Mali used this script at that time. The inscription translates as follows: “Plunge in to cleanse yourself. This is water for purification before prayer.” Finally, the scholarly art historian, Count Alexander von Wuthenau, a scholarly art historian, directed attention to fourteenth century carvings that were found in the Americas. These sculptures show men and women, clearly African, wearing turbans. Many have tattoo marks cut into their cheeks. This art may well depict people from Mali.
Link: Abubakari II–the Great African Explorer


4. Sultan Abu l-Hasan Ali of Morocco (ruled 1335-1351 AD)
Greatest monument builder in Mediaeval Morocco


The Merinid Dynasty became a great power in fourteenth century Morocco. Abu l-Hasan Ali (1335-1351), also called Al Sultan Aswad (i.e. the Black Sultan), was its greatest builder. He founded many of the cities in Morocco that exist today. In particular, he built great monuments in Fez such as madrassas (i.e. colleges) and the like. Moreover, Moroccan art and literature rose to its zenith under his patronage. His tomb is one of the architectural treasures of Morocco


41. Queen Oluwo of Ife (c.1000 AD)
Yoruba Queen who paved the southern Nigeria city of Ife


Professor Ekpo Eyo, a former head of the Nigerian museums system, narrates a curious oral tradition concerning Oni Oluwo, a distinguished Yoruba ruler. Apparently she was walking around the capital city of Ife when her regalia got splashed with mud. Oluwo was so upset by this that she ordered the construction of pavements for all the public and religious places in the city. Archaeology confirms that: “Pavements … are widespread in Africa. Potsherd pavements are the most common types of pavements known in West Africa … The most consistent reports about excavated pavements in West Africa have so far come from Ife, specifically the sites at: Oduduwa College, Lafogido, Ita Yemoo, Obalara’s Land and Woye Asiri Land.”

The pavements embellished the courtyards and often had altars built at the ends against walls. Peter Garlake adds that: “Many [of the pavements] had regular and geometric patterns, often emphasized by the incorporation of white quartz pebbles in their surface. Such pavements have been found on prehistoric sites from Tchad [sic] in the northeast to Togo in the west
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
Builder of Egypt’s Largest Monument


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Pharaoh Amenemhet III

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Pharaoh Amenemhet III

Amenemhet III, the last great ruler of the Egyptian Twelfth Dynasty (3242-3195 BC), built two important pyramids, at Hawara and Dashur. The former monument had a sepulchral chamber weighing a staggering 110 tons of yellow quartzite. He built a hall of granite pillars for Sobek. At Medinet Madi he built a temple to Renenutet, the Goddess of the harvest.

At Hawara he built the Labyrinth with its massive layout, multiple courtyards, chambers and halls. The very largest building in antiquity, it boasted 3,000 rooms. One thousand five hundred were above ground and the other one thousand five hundred were underground. Herodotus, the notable Greek historian of antiquity, saw it in ruins three thousand years later. He was still somewhat impressed: “I visited this place, and found it to surpass description; for if all the walls and other great works of the Greeks could be put together in one, they would not equal, either for labour or expense, this Labyrinth; and yet the [Greek] temple of Ephesus is a building worthy of note, and so is the temple of Samos. The pyramids likewise surpass description, and are equal to a number of the greatest works of the Greeks; but the Labyrinth surpasses the pyramids.”


14. Pharaoh Amenhotep III of Egypt (ruled 1538-1501 BC)
Presided over the Third Golden Age of Ancient Egypt

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Pharaoh Amenhotep III
Pharaoh Amenhotep III
Many of the monuments standing in Egypt today date from the Negro Eighteenth Egyptian Dynasty. There were many great rulers from this period, but Amenhotep III was particularly distinguished. Ascending the throne in 1538 BC, Amenhotep III ruled until 1501 BC. During his early years on the throne, the dominant influences came from his mother, Mutemwia. Later, he elevated Tiye to the position of Great Royal Wife. She became the real centre of power in later years as illness made Amenhotep III more and more dependent on her. Tiye built alliances by arranging diplomatic marriages. She also bought off Asian peoples through the gift giving of gold. In return the Asians sold lapis lazuli and cedar wood. A period of much prosperity and stability, this allowed for the construction of monuments. Amenhotep III commissioned a brilliant new temple in the city of Luxor containing hundreds of statues of Amen-Ra and himself. The Colossi of Memnon stood in front of his great temple at Waset. They were 65 feet high and an awesome 720 tons each. During this prosperity, members of the administrative and ruling class shared in the wealth of the land. They had great statues built of themselves and many could afford luxurious tombs. Overlooking the Nile from the West Bank, these private tombs were carved into the hills. A high official under Amenhotep II owned one of these tombs. It had three chapels decorated with coloured paintings showing daily life activities. In Nubia, Amenhotep III built the temples of Soleb and Sedeinga.

This period was indeed a Golden Age. Goods entered Egypt from Asia Minor, Crete, Cyprus, and elsewhere in Africa paid for by Egyptian grain, papyrus, linen and leather. From Asia Minor came coniferous woods. From Syria came oils, resins, weapons of metal, and wine. From Crete came vases. From Cyprus came copper. From the Aegean came silver. From Nubia, and the lands to the south, came ebony, elephant ivory, gums, leopard and panther skins, ostrich plumes and eggs, resins, and a variety of animals. Caravan trails of donkeys, mules and asses carried goods to and from Egypt, the Western Desert, and the Isthmus of Suez. Goods changed hands with the payment of silver, gold, grain or copper. One unit or deben (9.1 grams) of gold, equalled two units of silver, equalled two hundred units of copper or two hundred bushels of grain
 
Njii
Member # 21985
 - posted
LOL this thread proves that Africa had no rulers, no civilizations, no writing, no mounds or burial rites..... Just a bunch of low technology hunter gatherers and barbaric savages.

LOL off to "Black Europe" Lets learn more about the Black Swedes and the Black Estonians and the Blue Black Vandals and Visigoth and the Black Turks that were gettin it in during the crusades.
 
mena7
Member # 20555
 - posted
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Monomotapa King

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whydah-benin.-grandees-king-s-wives-favourite-sepulchre.-agoye-god-1746-300933-p.jpg

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Ife King
 



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