World’s second largest

continent

Huge deserts, plateaus,

savanna, and rain forest cover the

continent

Introduction of the camel allows for

cross Saharan trade between

nomadic people and West African

people

Kush

Axum Ghana

Mali

Great Zimbabwe

Songhay

KUSH

• Located south of Egypt in modern-day Sudan• Flourished between 700 BC-300 AD• Egyptian influences were of paramount importance in the

development of this region– Had trade contacts with Egypt since Middle Kingdom– New Kingdom Egypt actually took over the region and turned it

into a satellite state

EGYPT AND KUSH

• New Kingdom would leave indelible mark on Kush– Sons of elite were sent

to Egypt for education– Egyptian temples, gods,

rituals, traditions, and writing system were transplanted into Kush

– Even buried their rulers in pyramids

GOLDEN AGE OF KUSH

• Kush was driven out of Egypt by the Assyrians– But its greatest days still

lay ahead• Golden Age of Kush was

between 300 BC and 100 AD– Keys to its success were:• Its location• Its land• Its energetic people

MEROE• In general, Kush was rich in minerals

but arid– Not well-suited for agriculture

• Exception was the area immediately around the capital of Meroe– Well-watered by Nile River and

heavy annual rainfall– Possessed a broad expanse of crop

and pasture land that fed the entire kingdom and produced a surplus for export

• Upriver from Egypt– Its best trade partner

• Along several caravan routes– To Red Sea and Arab cities

Meroe

CULTURE

• Culture flourished in Kush– Huge walls surrounded Meroe

engraved with military victories, famous rulers, and gods

– Huge stone pyramids• However, Kush abandoned

hieroglyphics around 300 BC– Developed their own alphabet• Not deciphered entirely yet• So we don’t yet know what they

wrote after this date

REASONS FOR DOWNFALL I• Limited agricultural land around

Meroe finally became exhausted as farmers overworked it in attempt to keep up with growing population– Began to dry up and become

part of the Sahara Desert• Best trading partners, the

Egyptians, were squeezed dry by the Romans and plunged into poverty– Business with Egypt suffered as

a result

REASONS FOR DOWNFALL II

• Trade with Arabs taken over by new peoples who had established themselves along the African coast of the Red Sea– In fact, one of these

new Red Sea powers, the Kingdom of Axum, conquered a weakened Kush around 350 AD• Golden Age of Kush

over forever

ORIGINS OF THE AXUMITES

• Around 600 BC, Arabs crossed the Red Sea and settled in the region that is now Ethiopia– Over time, they merged

with the native people who already lived there• Eventually produced

the hybrid nationality known as the Axumites (100 BC)

MERCHANTS

• Axumites were merchants above all else– Obtained rhinoceros horn,

ivory, and gold from African interior• Then shipped these

commodities to the rest of the world at fantastic prices• Merchants were active in

Red Sea region, the eastern Mediterranean, Rome, and maybe even India

POWER AND CULTURE

• Used wealth to increase political and military power of Axum– Conquered all the land

from Kush down to what is now South Africa

• Capital city, Axum, developed highly sophisticated culture– Stone castles– Massive engraved walls– Obelisks

CHRISTIANITY• Originally polytheistic– But King Ezana converted to

Christianity• 400 AD• Tore down old temples and

replaced them with churches• Conversion to Christianity originally

strengthened Axum’s trade contacts with Christian Middle East– But the spread of Islam throughout

Middle East and North Africa cut Axum off from rest of Christian world• Axum then began long decline

DECLINE of AXUM• Axumite Empire disappeared

by 900 AD– Survivors lost their power

and wealth but they clung to their Christian faith• Comforted them in the

long centuries of poverty and isolation that followed• Allowed them to survive

to become the ancestors of Africa’s oldest independent people, the Ethiopians

Prosperity of Islamic North Africa stimulated trade across

the Sahara Desert

Merchants sought West African kola nuts, gums,

cotton cloth, hides, slaves, and gold

Exchanged salt for these items

Merchants had to follow very specific routes across the

desert

This allowed local strongmen who controlled these valuable routes to tax all caravans that

came their way

These individuals often evolved into powerful rules who controlled impressive states

Also used learning and literacy they gained from Muslim merchants to create impressive administrative systems and sophisticated cultures

Soon after the creation of an Islamic world economy, a number of states developed along

the southern border of the Sahara Desert which monopolized key trade routes and

gained widespread fame for their wealth and power.

KINGDOM OF GHANA• King of Ghana controlled

the caravan routes between the salt mines and the gold mines

• Used profits from this geographic position to develop a powerful army and expand his territory

ISLAM AND GHANA

• Rulers of Ghana welcomed Muslim merchants and teachers– Used Muslim learning

for economic and administrative purposes

– But they did not convert to Islam until the last days of their civilization

END OF GHANA

• Prosperity of Ghana was based solely on its control of the Sijilmassa caravan route– Did not manufacture any products or even grow much of its own

food• Just bought these things with profits of its caravan route

monopoly• But Ghana lost control of caravan route to desert nomads (Berbers)– And it quickly broke apart and collapsed

KINGDOM OF MALI• Main trade route across Sahara

shifted westward after the collapse of Ghana– Provided the base for the rise of

Kingdom of Mali• Local chieftain Sundiata came to

control this new caravan route– Used huge profits gained from

this control to create a powerful army and extend his territories into the west• Thus creating the Kingdom of

Mali

Sundiata Keita

CULTURE OF MALI

• Mali developed a system of internal trade based on the production and sale of agricultural products– Had a more diversified

economy than Ghana had• Rulers of Mali converted to

Islam early in their history– Turned their capital of

Timbuktu into a famous center of Islamic learning and worship

MANSA MUSA

• King Mansa Musa made trip to Mecca in 1324– Accompanied by huge army

of retainers and servants– Gave away huge amounts of

gold to local rulers along his route in order to broadcast his wealth

– Also spent vast amounts for provisions for his entourage

• Trip also intensified Islamic influence in Mali

END OF MALI

• After the death of Mansa Musa, Mali was attacked by desert tribes (Berbers)– Took over Timbuktu and

northern part of kingdom• At the same time, local

strongmen in other parts of the kingdom exploited the general chaos, broke away, and set up independent states

• By the 1370s, the Kingdom of Mali had completely collapsed

GREAT ZIMBABWE

• Located in what is now the modern country of Zimbabwe– Named after ruins– Traded with China and

India• Ruins are still impressive– Massive stone walls– A stone fortress– Stone towers– Strange statues of birds

WHO BUILT IT?• Ruins first discovered

in 1871

THE REAL GREAT ZIMBABWE

• Had been capital of a large state in southeaster Africa

• Active in international trade

• May have been a religious center since the numerous bird statues may have represented their god of the sky

ENVIRONMENTAL CATASTROPHE• Population reached 25,000 people– But this growth put

tremendous strain on fragile agricultural and grazing environment of the region• Which ultimately collapsed

due to over-farming and over-grazing

• With collapse of local environment, people began to leave the city– By 1600, the site was

completely abandoned

SUMMARY• Many more civilizations rose

and fell in other parts of Africa– All of which points to the

same thing:• Even though most of the

rest of the world didn’t know about it, Africans frequently developed sophisticated and prosperous civilizations long before Europeans arrived on the continent with their allegedly gift of civilization