African Empires PPT

AXUM

Rise of Axum  Strength came from location on the Red Sea  Goods from Africa flowed into Axum, making it a trading center

Important Leaders  King Ezana (AD 400) – defeated the Kush  He also brought a new religion, Christianity, to Africa  Christianity was made the official religion of Axum in AD 334

Trade Goods  Exports  Spices  Ivory  Ebony  Animal skins  Tortoise shells  Imports  Textiles  Precious metal objects  Wine  Olive oil

Decline of Axum  Constant fighting with Muslims in Arabia and Egypt along the Red Sea weakened Axum  Aksum lost power and territory, but aspects of its culture survive today.

GHANA

Rise of Ghana  Rose to power in AD 400s  Crossroads of trade  People paid taxes to pass through  Why did they agree to this?  Ghana had iron weapons and controlled gold mines  Had a HUGE army  People wanted trade items like salt and gold

Trade  The camel was used for trade before the arrival of the Muslims  Resources were gold, ivory, and salt  Traded with centers in North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe in exchange for manufactured goods  Money from trade enabled the empire to grow.

Capital  Believed to be at Koumbi Saleh  Major part of the city called El-Ghaba, protected by a stone wall and was the royal and spiritual capital of the Empire  Had a sacred grove of trees used for Soninke religious rites  Contained the king’s palace  Other sections of the city surrounded by wells with fresh water, vegetable gardens, and was inhabited by mostly Muslims  12 mosques  Primary business was trade

Government  Kings relied on help from a council of ministers (close advisers)  As the empire grew, it was broken up into provinces  These were governed by lesser kings  Beneath them were district chiefs  Each district usually included a clan  Kings kept a close eye on things, riding through the countryside listening for injustice or rebellion  Kings controlled trade

Ghana’s Decline  Too much farming made the soil poor  Constant fighting with their army  Accepted Islam but fought with African Muslims to the north who wanted to build their own empires

MALI

Rise of Mali  In 1200 the kingdom of Mali conquered what was left of Ghana  African storytellers (griots) give credit to a great warrior-king named Sundiata Keita (“Lion Prince”) (r )  Sundiata won lands from the Atlantic Coast to the city of Timbuktu  He gained control of gold mining areas

Government  Mali was much larger than Ghana with more territory, more people, and more trade  Royal officials had many responsibilities  Oversaw fishing, forests, farming, and money management (budget)  Sundiata, the founder of Mali, put generals in charge of the many provinces  The generals often came from the provinces they controlled and protected people from invaders  Mansa Musa gave people gifts for loyalty and rewards for military heroes

Religion  Most people continued to follow traditional African spiritual beliefs  Many of the government leaders were Muslim

Timbuktu  Southern edge of Sahara and 8 miles north of the Niger River (good location)  Was a center for trade and for Islamic learning

Major Trade Goods  Ivory  Slaves  Copper  Salt  Animal hides

Decline of Mali  Began a slow decline after the death of its last strong king Mansa Musa  The weak kings after him could not stop Berber invasions

SONGHAI

Rise of Songhai  Sunni Ali drove the Berbers out of Timbuktu  He used Songhai’s location along the Niger River to his advantage.  He took over river trade and expanded into the Sahara Desert, taking over the Berber salt mines  By the time of his death in 1492 he had built the largest empire in West Africa

Government  Founded by Sunni Ali, and was also divided into provinces  Sunni Ali was constantly fighting battles and never had a chance to finish setting up his government before he died in 1492  Muhammad Ture took control of the government  He was a loyal Muslim, which impacted the ideas of the government

Askia Muhammad  Under Askia Muhammad, Songhai built the largest empire in medieval West Africa.  He allowed people to keep their local government, but that people had to follow Muslim laws  Timbuktu was made an important center of culture and learning  He set up 150 schools to teach the Quran

Major Trade Goods  Salt  gold

Decline of Songhai  In 1591, a small army from Morocco crossed the Sahara  They had cannons, guns, and gunpowder which allowed them to easily defeat the Songhai within months