Songhai Empire

From New World Encyclopedia
The Songhai Empire, c. 1500

The Songhai Empire, also known as the Songhay Empire, was a pre-colonial African state centered in the eastern portion of present day Mali. From the early 15th to the late 16th century, Songhai was one of the largest African empires in West Africa, and maintained as its capital Gao, where a small Songhai state had existed since around 9th century. The Songhay Empire drew much of its power from the areas on the bend of the Niger River in present-day Niger and Burkina Faso. This empire bore the same name as its leading ethnic group, the Songhai.

Origins of the Songhay Empire

Prior to the rise of the Songhai Empire, the region had been dominated by the Mali Empire, centered on Timbuktu. With the preeminence of Mali due to immense riches obtained through trade with the Arab world, and the legendary hajj of Mansa Musa the Mali dominance of the region began to decline in face of challenges from the people of the Middle Niger who desired to play a role in the trade routes dominated by Mali. By the early 15th century, the Mali Empire was officially in decline, and many subject broke away from Mali rule as internal disputes over sucession weakened the political authority of the crown. One such community who took the opportunity to free themselves from Mali rule were the Songhai , who made the prominent city of Gao their new capital.

Gao

The history of the ancient city of Gao has been recontructed from oral history and tombstone writing at the burial site of kings. While the two sources of historical record do not always agree in details, together they form an image of Gao beginnning in the seventh century C.E. While it would not be considered the center of the Songhay empire until early in the eleventh century C.E. , the first records of Gao describe a bustling trade center that had established political autonomy. Capitalisizing on the conditions already existing in Gao, the Songhai chose it as their capital in 1010 C.E., a move which set Gao along the road of future developments and growth.

Sunni Dynasty

The first great king of Songhai was Sunni Ali. Ali was a Muslim like the Mali kings before him. He was also an efficient warrior who in the 1460s conquered many of the Songhai's neighboring states, including what remained of the Mali Empire. With his control of critical trade routes and cities such as Timbuktu, Sunni Ali brought great wealth to the Songhai Empire, which at its height would surpass the wealth of the Mali.

Askia Dynasty

Sunni Ali was followed by an emperor named Askia Muhammad from the Mandé people, who would preside over Songhai's golden age. Whereas Ali brought conquests, Muhammad brought political reform and revitalization. He set up a complex bureaucracy with separate departments for agriculture, the army, and the treasury, to each of which he appointed supervising officials. A devout Muslim, Muhammad not only completed a pilgrimage to Mecca like Mansa Musa before him, but opened religious schools, constructed mosques, and opened up his court to scholars and poets from throughout the Muslim world.

The Height of the Songhay Empire

Economic Structure

Safe economic trade existed throughout the Empire, due to the 200,000 person army stationed in the provinces. A primary economic source was the goldfields of the Niger River. The Songhai empire would trade with these nearby but independent goldfields; salt was so precious in the region that the people of West Africa would sometimes be prepared to trade gold for equal quantities in salt. Eighty percent of the people lived on small, family-owned farms no more than 10 acres large. The trans-Saharan trade consisted primarily of gold, salt, and slaves. The Julla (merchants) would form partnerships, and the state would protect these merchants, and the port cities on Niger. It was a very strong and powerful trading kingdom. They also made crafts for trade, and for religious purposes. .

Social Structure

Upper classes in society converted to Islam while lower classes continued to follow traditional religions. Sermons emphasize obedience to King. Timbuktu was the educational capital.

Expansion

At its greatest extent, the Songhai lands reached far down the Niger river into modern day Nigeria itself, all the way to the Northeast of modern day Mali, and even to a small part of the Atlantic ocean in the West. There were large cities like Gao and Timbuktu, but 80% of people lived in small family owned farm houses. Songhai would continue to prosper until late into the 16th century, particularly under the long and peaceful rule of Askia Daoud.

Decline of the Songhay Empire

Following Daoud's death, however, a civil war over succession weakened the Empire, leading Morocco Sultan Ahmad I al-Mansur Saadi to dispatch an invasion force under the Judar Pasha. Judar Pasha was a Spaniard by birth, but had been captured as a baby and educated at the Moroccan court. After a cross-Saharan march, Judar's forces razed the salt mines at Taghaza and moved on Gao; when Askia Ishaq II (r. 1588-1591) met Judar at the 1591 Battle of Tondibi, the Songhai forces were routed by the Moroccan's gunpowder weapons despite vastly superior Songhai numbers. Judar sacked Gao, Timbuktu, and Djenné, destroying the Songhai as a regional power. However, governing such a vast empire across such long distances proved too much for the Moroccans, and they soon relinquished control of the region, letting it splinter into dozens of smaller kingdoms.

See also

  • The Mali Empire
  • Jews of the Bilad el-Sudan (West Africa)
  • Jews and Judaism in Africa

Bibliography

  • Cissoko, S. M., Timbouctou et l'empire songhay, Paris. 1975.
  • Hunwick, J., Timbuktu and the Songhay Empire, Leiden. 2003. ISBN 9004125604
  • Lange, D., Ancient Kingdoms of West Africa, Dettelbach. 2004 ISBN 3897541157
  • Davidson, B., West Africa Before the Colonial Era: A History to 1850, Essex. 1998. ISBN 0582318521

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