The Sahelian kingdoms were a series of medieval empires centred on the
Sahel, the area of grasslands south of the
Sahara.
The first major state to rise in this region was the
Ghana Empire (Wagadu). The name Ghana, often used by historians, was the regional title given to the ruler of the Wagadu empire.[8] Centered in what is today
Senegal and
Mauritania, it was the first to benefit from the introduction of gold mining. Ghana's imperial era has been theorized to have initiated around 100 CE to 300 CE then come to dominate the region between about 750 and 1078. Smaller states in the region at this time included
Takrur to the west, the
Malinke kingdom of Mali to the south, and the
Songhai Empire centred on
Gao to the east.
When Ghana atrophied in the face of invasion from the
Almoravids, a series of brief kingdoms followed taking up the mantle of regional power, notably that of the
Sosso (Susu); after 1235, the
Mali Empire rose to dominate the region completely filling the imperial vacuum left by the once powerful Ghana Empire. Located on the
Niger River to the west of Ghana in what is today
Niger and
Mali, it reached its peak in the 1350s, but had lost control of a number of vassal states by 1400.
The most powerful of these states was the
Songhai Empire, which expanded rapidly beginning with king
Sonni Ali in the 1460s. By 1500, it had risen to stretch from
Cameroon to the
Maghreb, the largest state in African history. It too was quite short-lived and collapsed in 1591 as a result of
Moroccanmusketry.
Far to the east, on
Lake Chad, the state of
Kanem-Bornu, founded as Kanem in the 9th century, now rose to greater preeminence in the central Sahel region. To their west, the loosely united
Hausa city-states became dominant. These two states coexisted uneasily, but were quite stable.
In 1810, the
Sokoto Caliphate rose and conquered the Hausa, creating a more centralized state. It and Kanem-Bornu would continue to exist until the arrival of Europeans, when both states would fall and the region would be divided between
France and
Great Britain.
The
Jolof Empire ruled parts of
Senegal from 1350 to 1549. After 1549, its vassal states were fully or de facto independent; in this period it is known as the
Jolof Kingdom. It was largely conquered by the
imamate of Futa Jallon in 1875 and its territories fully incorporated into
French West Africa by 1890.
Empires of 15th–19th century Africa
From the 15th century until the final
Scramble for Africa in the late 19th century a number of empires were also established south of the Sahel, especially in
West Africa.
The West African empires of this period peaked in power in the late 18th century, paralleling the peak of the
Atlantic slave trade. These empires implemented a culture of permanent warfare in order to generate the required numbers of captives required to satisfy the demand for slaves by the European colonies. With the gradual
abolition of slavery in the European colonial empires during the 19th century, slave trade again became less lucrative and the West African empires entered a period of decline, and mostly collapsed by the end of the 19th century.[9]
The
Kingdom of Dagbon was founded by
Naa Gbewaa circa 11th Century. The Kingdom is one of the largest and oldest in modern Ghana. This kingdom spanned across Northern Ghana, North East Ivory Coast, Southern Burkina Faso and North West Togo. It is the progenitor of the Mossi Kingdoms of Burkina Faso founded by
Yennega, the Bouna of Ivory Coast and the Dagaaba states. The kingdom is known for its fierce resistance to slavery.
The
Kingdom of Nri (c.900 - 1911) the oldest kingdom in modern-day Nigeria, was unusual in the history of world government in that its leader exercised no military power over his subjects. The kingdom existed as a sphere of religious and political influence over much of
Igboland, and was administered by a
priest-
king called the
eze Nri. The eze Nri managed trade and diplomacy on behalf of the Igbo people, and was the possessor of divine authority in religious matters.
The
Oyo Empire (1400–1895) was a
West African empire of what is today western
Nigeria. The empire was established by the
Yoruba in the 15th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states. It rose to prominence through wealth gained from trade and its possession of a powerful
cavalry. The Oyo Empire was the most politically important state in the region from the mid-17th to the late 18th century, holding sway not only over other Yoruba states, but also over the
Fon kingdom of
Dahomey (located in the state now known as the
Republic of Benin).
Benin Empire (1240–1897), a pre-colonial African empire of modern
Nigeria, Ancient
Benin Empire was one of the oldest and most highly developed states in the coastal hinterland of
West Africa, The empire offers a snapshot of a relatively well-organized and sophisticated African polity in operation before the major European colonial interlude.
Kaabu Empire (1537–1867), a
Mandinka Kingdom of
Senegambia (centered on modern northeastern
Guinea-Bissau but extending into
Casamance,
Senegal) that rose to prominence in the region thanks to its origins as a former province of the
Mali Empire. After the decline of the Mali Empire, Kaabu became an independent kingdom.
Bonoman (11th century–19th century), earliest known Akan state. Gold trading and Kola nut trading with Northern Neighbors brought wealth and prosperity to Akan creators of this state. Culture influenced much of modern Akan culture.
The
Kingdom of Wémè was founded during the height of the slave trade in the late 17th century. Nowadays it is centred in modern-day
Benin, ruled by its own traditional legitimate monarch in the Ouémé Valley.
Ashanti Empire (1701–1894), a pre-colonial Akan West African state of what is now the
Ashanti Region in
Ghana. The empire stretched from central
Ghana to present day
Togo and
Côte d'Ivoire, bordered by the
Dagomba kingdom to the north and
Dahomey to the east. Today, the
Ashanti monarchy continues as one of the constitutionally protected, sub-national traditional states within the Republic of Ghana.
Various states by
Akan people (11th century–19th century)
Bamana Empire (1712–1896), based at
Ségou, now in
Mali. It was ruled by the Kulubali or Coulibaly dynasty established c. 1640 by
Fa Sine also known as
Biton-si-u. The empire existed as a centralized state from 1712 to the 1861 invasion of
Toucouleur conqueror El Hadj
Umar Tall.
Sokoto Caliphate (1804–1903), an Islamic empire in
Nigeria, led by the
Sultan of Sokoto,
Sa'adu Abubakar. Founded during the
Fulani Jihad in the early 19th century, it was one of the most powerful empires in sub-Saharan Africa prior to European conquest and colonization. The caliphate remained extant through the colonial period and afterwards, though with reduced power.
Wassoulou Empire (1878–1898), a short-lived empire built from the conquests of
Dyula ruler
Samori Ture and destroyed by the French colonial army.
Akwa Akpa (18th century), Duke Town, originally known as Atakpa, is an
Efik city-state that flourished in the 19th century in what is now southern
Nigeria. The City State extended from now
Calabar to
Bakassi in the east and
Oron to the west.
Ife Empire (1200 - 1420) The Ife Empire was the first empire in Yoruba history. It was founded in what is now southwestern Nigeria and eastern Benin today. The Ife Empire lasted from 1200 to 1420. Its capital city, Ilé-Ife, was one of the largest urban centers, the biggest emporium, and the wealthiest polity south of the Niger River during the mid-14th-century.
The
Kongo Kingdom (1400–1888) was a quasi-imperial state as is evident by the number of people and kingdoms that paid it tribute. If not for the large amount of text written by the EssiKongo that repeatedly called themselves a kingdom, they would be listed as the "Kongo Empire".
The ancestors of the
Kalanga/
Karanga and
Venda people found in
South Africa,
Botswana, and
Zimbabwe today would intermarry with
San Bushmen around the region of
Limpopo, forming the first ever drystone walling[citation needed], which dates back to 200 BC and is still found in
Chiredzi today. The purpose of this drystone walling was to protect the king from dangers related to population increase and agricultural expansion. This drystone walling eventually lost its original purpose of protecting the king; thereafter it became a symbol of unity of the people and of the power of the king[citation needed]. This would give rise to the
Kingdom of Mapungubwe[clarification needed], which was a sister city to the contemporaneous city
Great Zimbabwe. The
Mutapa Empire would rise in 1450[citation needed].
The
Mutapa Empire or Empire of Great Zimbabwe (1450–1629) was a medieval kingdom located between the
Zambezi and
Limpopo rivers of
Southern Africa in the modern states of
Zimbabwe and
Mozambique. Remnants of the historical capital are found in the ruins of
Great Zimbabwe.
The
Sennar Sultanate (1502–1821) was a
sultanate in the north of
Sudan. It was named Funj after
the ethnic group of its dynasty or Sinnar (or Sennar) after its capital, which ruled a substantial area of the Sudan region.
Comparison
Vansina (1962) discusses the classification of
Sub-Saharan African kingdoms, mostly of Central, South and East Africa, with some additional data on West African (Sahelian) kingdoms distinguishing five types, by decreasing centralization of power:
Despotic kingdoms: Kingdoms where the king controls the internal and external affairs directly. Examples are Ruanda, Nkore, Soga and Kongo in the 16th century
Regal kingdoms: Kingdoms where the king controls the external affairs directly, and the internal affairs via a system of overseers. The king and his chiefs belong to the same clans or lineages.
Incorporative kingdoms: Kingdoms where the king controls only the external affairs with no permanent administrative links between him and the chiefs of the provinces. The hereditary chiefdoms of the provinces were left undisturbed after conquest. Examples are the Bamileke, Lunda, Luba, Lozi.
Aristocratic kingdoms: The only link between central authority and the provinces is payment of
tribute. These kingdoms are morphologically intermediate between regal kingdoms and federations. This type is rather common in Africa, examples including the Kongo of the 17th century, the Cazembe, Luapula, Kuba, Ngonde, Mlanje, Ha,
Zinza and
Chagga States of the 18th century.
Federations: Kingdoms (such as the
Ashanti Union) where the external affairs are regulated by a council of elders headed by the king, who is simply primus inter pares.
Hunwick, John O. (2003). Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire: Al-Saʻdī's Taʼrīkh Al-sūdān Down to 1613 and Other Contemporary Documents. Leiden: Brill Academic Publishers. pp. 488 Pages.
ISBN90-04-12822-0.
Mwakikagile, Godfrey (2000). Africa and the West. Hauppauge: Nova Publishers.
ISBN1-56072-840-X. 243 pages{{
cite book}}: CS1 maint: postscript (
link)