Ch.7-Section V. Africa

• Although the Mongols spread over Asia and threatened Europe they never reached Africa
• Africa, the second largest continent, covers over one-fifth of the Earth's land surface and is nearly four times the size of the continental United States
• Despite being a large plateau, Africa has mountains, deserts, grassy flatlands, and jungles
• Egyptians established the earliest recorded civilization in Africa along the Nile
• Carthage thrived in North Africa during the Roman Republic, later becoming part of the Roman Empire
• Muslims spread across North Africa post-Rome's collapse, bringing the region under Islamic control

Sub-Saharan Africa

• Sub-Saharan Africa's history is not as well known but is important

Ancient African Civilizations

• Centuries before Europeans entered sub-Saharan Africa, several African empires and kingdoms thrived

Kingdom of Kush

• The earliest kingdom in northeast Africa was the Kingdom of Kush, located in modern-day northern Sudan
• Kush's capital, Meroë, had ruins near Khartoum
• Originally an Egyptian province, Kush (Nubia) gained power and, by 700 BC, overthrew Egyptian rule and established its dynasty of pharaohs
• The Tirhakah of Ethiopia mentioned in 2 Kings 19:9 is a Kushite ruler, Taharqa
• The Assyrians drove the Kushites out of Egypt in the mid-600s BC, but the Kushite kingdom continued for nearly another thousand years

Kingdom of Aksum

• Kush eventually fell to the kingdom of Aksum
• Around AD 330, the ruler of Aksum defeated the Kushites, burning their towns and destroying statues in their temples
• Aksum embraced Christianity and claimed its rulers were descendants of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba

Frumentius

• Aksum's conversion to Christianity was likely due to Frumentius, a Syrian Christian
• Aksum's conversion to Christianity intensified trade with the Roman Empire
• Muslim invasions in North Africa later cut off Aksum from European contact
• Aksum continued to exist and became the nucleus of modern Ethiopia

Frumentius, "Apostle to the Abyssinians"

• Frumentius promoted his Christian faith while serving the kingdom
• He encouraged Christian merchants from the Roman Empire to hold private services during their visits to Aksum
• People of Aksum began converting to Christianity under Frumentius
• Ezana, the king who defeated Kush in 330, seemed to accept Christianity later in life, crediting his victory to the "Lord of Heaven"
• Ezana's conversion was perhaps the crowning work of Frumentius, known as the "Apostle to the Abyssinians"

Central and Western Africa

• Important kingdoms arose in central and western Africa during Europe's Middle Ages
• A lot of the histories were not written but orally passed
• Oral tradition, archaeology, and accounts by non-Africans provide insight into these cultures
• The kingdoms of Kanem (ca. 700-1380) and Bornu (1396-1893) thrived on Lake Chad in Central Africa
• These kingdoms profited from camel caravan trade and built strong militaries
• The three kingdoms of western Africa were Ghana, Mali, and Songhai

Ghana, Mali, and Songhai

• Ghana, Mali, and Songhai's wealth derived from gold mines and camel caravan trade in gold, salt, and other precious items across the Sahara
• The Niger River provided a base for these empires as its waters drew travelers crossing the desert
• Ghana rose to prominence first, enjoying its heyday from ca. 700 to 1200
• Muslim forces from northern Africa attacked and weakened Ghana in the eleventh century but failed to conquer it
• Mali rose to power, dominating western Africa from 1200 to 1500
• Mansa Musa (r. 1312-ca. 1337) was the most famous ruler of Mali
• Mansa Musa made a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 with sixty thousand men and several thousand pounds of gold and astonished the Egyptians with his wealth while staying in Cairo
• Musa's capital, Timbuktu, became Africa's most important centre of trade
• Books began to rival gold as an item for trade

Songhai Empire

• In the fifteenth century, the Songhai Empire overthrew the Mali Empire
• It stretched farther than either Ghana or Mali, reaching the Atlantic in the west and pressing the kingdom of Bornu on Lake Chad in the east
• Invading Moroccan forces with muzzle-loading guns ended the Songhai Empire in 1591, ending the western African empires

East African City-States

• A series of independent city-states existed along the eastern coast of Africa as early as the Roman Empire
• After the collapse of Rome, they kept flourishing as outlets for gold, iron, ivory, and animal skins to the Arabs and Persians
• Prosperous city-states traded goods from the interior with Arab sea traders
• Kilwa grew wealthy and cultured due to this trade and a temperate climate
• These city-states shared a culture that was a mixture of Arab, Persian, and African elements
• The architecture was predominantly Arab, and the language of the city-states, Swahili, was dominantly native African but contained elements of Arabic, Persian, and Indian
• After 1500, the city-states were conquered by Portuguese forces who attacked the coasts to seize control of trade
• The Swahili language has survived, and the term Swahili is used to describe the culture of some eastern Africans

Forest Kingdoms

• The "forest kingdoms" of the interior of Africa provided goods for the eastern city-states to sell
• Records of these kingdoms are scarce
• The best-known forest kingdoms are those with which Europeans came into contact right after the close of the Middle Ages
• The most important was the kingdom of Benin in western Africa (today's southern Nigeria)
• It arose in 1440 and lasted until 1897 and was a centre for trade
• Benin produced fine statues and relief sculptures in bronze. The metalworking of Benin became one of the highest known artistic accomplishments of early African history

African Culture

• Daily life for most Africans centred on smaller social organisations rather than kingdoms and empires
• The family was foundational
• Polygamy was common in many tribes, families were large and complex
• Several families with a common ancestor formed a clan
• A group of two or more clans, in turn, formed a tribe
• The tribe was perhaps the most important cultural organisation, and a single tribe dominated many African kingdoms
• Some regions embraced Christianity, while Islam claimed many converts who only displayed superficial adherence
• Muslim patterns often influenced African kingdoms in structuring their governments, organising their systems of education, and establishing their currency
• Most people in sub-Saharan Africa held to traditional tribal religions
• These traditional religions taught that there was a high god who created the universe, and below him were lesser gods and the spirits of dead ancestors
• Prayers and sacrifices were offered to these gods to ward off illnesses and increase crop yields
• Most Africans relied on farming or herding to sustain themselves and their families
• Trade, was the stay of the African kingdoms (gold, salt, ivory, and animal skins)
• As Europeans began sailing to African ports, the camel caravan trade became less important
• A new trade opened with Arabs and later with Europeans known as the slave trade
• Demand for slaves increased as Islam became dominant in many regions
• This traffic in human lives became one of the main points of contact for African-European relations after 1500, leading to terrible suffering and exploitation of the African people