S3E11: Queen Mother Konadu

 

Despite the numerous reforms made by the asantehene Osei Kwadwo meant to stabilize the Ashanti political system, the empire descended into a major dynastic crisis almost immediately upon his death. On one side was a coalition of the empire's rising bourgeoisie (wealthy non-nobles), less entrenched political elites, and Muslim vassal kings. They supported the young and Muslim-sympathizing prince of Mampong, Osei Kwame, on the throne On the other side the entrenched political establishment in the Kotoko council and the nobility of the southwest supported the queen mother Konadu Yaadom, who sought to enstool her son as the next asantehene. At the council to select the next king, the assembled bureaucrats and nobles chose to enstool Kwame. However, almost immediately after her defeat, Konadu convinced her ally from the Kotoko council, the minister of war Atakora, to march on Kumasi and overthrow Kwame. While Kwame and his allies were forced to retreat to Juaben for a short time, they eventually rallied their allies to take back Kumasi and force Konadu and Atakora to retreat to the northern city of Mampong, which at the time was ruled by one of Konadu's in-laws. The next year, one of Kwame's allies marched on and captured the town, imprisoning Konadu and her son while executing many of her supporters.

A road on the rural outskirts of Mampong, a town with deep personal connections to both Konadu and Osei Kwame

Next episode, we'll see what happens in the aftermath of this chaotic period, as Osei Kwame attempts to solidify his place on the golden stool with purges and heavy-handedness.

S3E10: The Abura Crisis

 

In the modern era, Abura has merged with the nearby town of Dunkwa, and is a small town in South-Central Ghana.

The latest podcast episode followed the foreign policy of the asantehene Osei Kwadwo. As we'll see throughout this episode, Kwadwo's foreign policy strategy involved a stronger emphasis on diplomacy and craftiness instead of brute force. Particularly, Kwadwo often used the tactic of diplomatically isolating his enemies, making them easier to conquer, while cultivating alliances when strategically advantageous.

Ashanti foreign policy had been a mess under his predecessor, Kusi Obodom. During his predecessors rule, many of the empire's peripheral provinces, including the southern states of Akyem, Wasa, and Twifo, as well as the northern vassals of Bonoman and Dagbon slipped away from Ashanti influence. This left the Ashanti in a difficult position, as now both of their primary avenues for foreign trade were commanded by hostile states. To make matters worse, any attempt to reconquer the southern breakaways would be difficult, as the breakaway states had aligned with the powerful southern confederation of Fante. However, this southern alliance would not last long. The allied states really only shared one thing in common - their mutual fear of the Ashanti, but apart from that the interests and needs of each state varied. 

The rupture in the southern alliance that Osei Kwadwo would take advantage of arose when the Wasa kingdom of the southwest reignited its practice of raiding Fante border towns. While minor at first, this eventually became a large enough problem that some in the Fante state were convinced that the Wasa were a bigger threat than the Ashanti. The Fante were generally divided into two factions: a pro-Ashanti party, led by the king of Mankessim (the de jure head of the Fante alliance), and the anti-Ashanti party, led by a man name Kwegil. Kwegil was the head of the Asafo military companies of Fante, meaning that he was the de facto military leader of the confederation. In 1765, two Ashanti noblemen arrived in the Fante town of Abora. They claimed that they were there to negotiate an alliance, and would stay as hostages as a sign of good will. Despite initial suspicion, the Fante ultimately agreed to an alliance with the Ashanti to deal with the Akyem and Wasa. At the end of the year, both countries invaded the Akyem kingdom, with the Akyem king becoming a Fante prisoner. However, when Ashanti armies moved suspiciously close to the Fante border, the alliance between the Fante and Ashanti almost immediately broke down. The Asafo companies mobilized to meet the Ashanti near Abora, with the two engaging in a standstill. The Fante didn't want to fight the Ashanti, while the Ashanti were worried that the start of a new war could result in the execution of their hostage diplomats. This standstill persisted until 1772.

In 1772, after several years of failure in negotiating the release of the hostages, Osei Kwadwo settled on a new plan. He would again try to drive a wedge between the Fante and their allies. This time, he sought to drive a wedge between the Fante and their European ally - the British. To do this, he would first need to secure Ashanti access to the sea. In 1772, an Ashanti army marched to Accra, the largest and wealthiest Ga city. There, he offered the Ga an alliance against the Fante, who had become increasingly domineering towards the Ga. The king of Accra accepted. Next, Kwadwo reached out to the Dutch and Danish, the Ashanti's European allies. He asked for them to strongarm the British by pledging support for the Ashanti if war broke out. As a result, the British backed down, convinced that war between the Fante and Ashanti would harm their trade on the coast. Without British support, the diplomatically isolated Fante relented and released the Ashanti hostages.

War between the Fante and Ashanti broke out later that year. In the end, little changed. The Ashanti protected their allies in the Ga cities of Accra and Appalonia, while mounting a semi-successful invasion of the Wasa. Meanwhile, Ashanti armies in the east were defeated by the Krobo, a Ga group which chose to align with the Fante. In 1776, the two sides agreed to peace. With Accra and Appalonia now firmly under their influence, the Ashanti could resume trade on the coast, including importation of firearms. Now that they could purchase firearms again to supplement their domestic firearm industry, the better armed Ashanti army turned north, and reasserted control over the northern territories of Bonoman and Dagbon.

Osei Kwadwo died in 1777. His reign was one of the most successful in Ashanti history, marked by necessary reforms to the Ashanti government and successful ventures in foreign policy. But, despite his successes, his reign would be followed (like many others in Ashanti history) by chaos and infighting. Next episode, we'll focus on yet another Ashanti civil conflict, in which an important noblewoman tries to place her son on the throne, but faces opposition from the richest man in the Ashanti empire.

S3E9: The Kwadwoan Revolution

The period that lasted from the late 18th Century until the mid 19th Century is often labelled the Age of Revolutions. Visualizing this time period provokes images of the various revolutions of Europe and the Americas, and the likeness of George Washington, Simon Bolivar, Maximillian Robespierre.

In the West African Empire of Ashanti, the late 18th Century was also a time of revolution. In 1763, a crowd of bureaucrats, nobles, and common people alike convened in the empire's capital of Kumasi. There, they declared the impeachment of the current Asantehene, the elderly and unpopular Kusi Obodom. The crowd had many bones to pick with Obodom: his cession of power to provincial governors, his failed military record, and the general moribundity of his rule. In his place, the assembled citizens elected the energetic reformer prince, Osei Kwadwo.

Despite his unpopularity, Kusi Obodom was still given a traditional black funerary stool. His was kept separately from the other kings' stools though, and is thus not pictured here.

Due to the many radical reforms implemented during his rule, as well as the fact that he was the first elected asantehene, the period of Kwadwo's rule would go down in history as the Kwadwoan Revolution. And revolutionary it was. By the time Kwadwo's reign ended, every aspect of Ashanti government had been radically transformed. While the asantehene had never been a true autocrat in practice, Kwadwo's reforms would significantly limit executive power, making the Ashanti Empire into a true constitutional monarchy.

The first area of government which Kwadwo reformed was the Kotoko, the cabinet of local kings that advised the asantehene on matters of state. The fact that local kings served on the Kotoko was vital for state stability, but was also somewhat of a relic of Osei Tutu's era. Promoting unity within the Ashanti state was still important, but the loyalty of the kings of Juaben, Bekwai, and Mampong was no longer the pressing issue it once was. In fact, having local kings in this important administrative system caused more trouble than it was worth. During the recent failed war against the Dahomey, the potential dangers of including unqualified nobles in government was made clear. Odankua, a constituent king on the Kotoko, performed poorly during the war, and his unwise decision making contributed to the Ashanti's defeat. Kwadwo did not abolish the inclusion of local kings on the Kotoko, but rather limited their role. In addition to the three kings, new positions filled by professional bureaucrats were added to the council. These included a designated minister of war, minister of finance, and governor of Kumasi. These positions were not hereditary, but rather appointed based on merit. Kwadwo also shook up the bureaucracy more generally, abolishing hereditary bureaucratic offices and replacing them with meritocratic positions.

However, the most pressing issue for Kwadwo to reform was the balance of power within the Ashanti government. For the last several decades, conflicts between the Nsafohene (national bureaucrats from Kumasi), and amanhene (provincial governors) had contributed to instability within the Ashanti state. At its worst, this feud had contributed to the civil war that brought Kusi Obodom to power. To reduce the potential instability of these conflicts, Kwadwo decided to create an alternative means for these two groups to settle disputes. He created a parliamentary body called the Asantemanhyiamu, or "Meeting of the Ashanti Nation." This parliament was attended by both Nsafohenes and Amanhenes, as well as the asantehene himself and the members of the Kotoko. The creation of the Asantemanhyiamu allowed the Amanhene and Nsafohene to settle their disputes through deliberation and argumentation, rather than civil war. 

While they now lack any formal legal power, the traditional bureaucrats, amanhene, and local nobility continue to meet at the Asantemanhyiamu (now held at the Manhyia Palace, Kumasi)

Kwadwo also ordered the creation of another parliamentary body, the Mpanyimfo. This body, rather than attended by bureaucrats and governors, was supposed to represent the interests of the Ashanti commoners. Each attendee was a respected elder from a village or city within the empire, and, in theory, represented the interests of their constituency. While not democratic per say, the Mpanyimfo did provide Ashanti commoners with something resembling governmental representation. While not elected, these local elders were more receptive and accountable to common people's policy needs than, say, government bureaucrats. 

S3E8: The Dahomey War

In 1763, war broke out between the Ashanti and Dahomey empires. These two empires, the most important states in the region of modern Ghana, Togo, and Benin, clashed at the small village of Atakpame. The result would forever change both empires.

In 1763, the Dahomey was still a relative newcomer as a great power. The empire's capital of Abomey began expanding into neighboring regions around 1720, and would eventually seize control of the Akwamu empire's easternmost vassal: the coastal city state of Ouidah. The Akwamu, preoccupied with internal disputes and numerous other wars, were unconcerned with this rising power to their East. However, after a brief lull in expansion, the Dahomey once again pushed west towards Akwamu. In the 1740s, they destroyed the formerly significant kingdom, reducing its area of influence only to its capital city of Akwamufie.

While Dahomey expansion concerned the Ashanti, it possessed little priority compared to other, more pressing issues. Namely, the southern states of Twifo, Fante, Akyem, and Wasa, as well as their vassal kingdoms, united into an alliance to combat Ashanti influence in the south of Ghana. Together, they formed a significant bulwark. However, the Ashanti managed to take advantage of disunity in this faction, declaring war on the Akyem and occupying much of their lost territory. The Ashanti, however, soon recognized evidence for Dahomey support for these rebellions. The unpopular and elderly Ashanti king, Kusi Obodom, was pressured by the Juabenhen, Odankua, into declaring a punitive war against the Dahomey.

Odankua would lead this expedition, and formulated a simple plan: march an army straight into the Dahomey capital city of Abomey, show Ashanti strength, and then retreat having sent a message of not messing with the Ashanti. Convinced that the Dahomey would not be capable of mounting any serious resistance, Odankua's army marched hastily through the Dahomey's recently conquered territories. Encountering no opposition, the Ashanti army stopped to rest at the village of Atakpame before they would continue their march to the capital.

Today, Atakpame is a tranquil town in the Togo countryside. In 1763, it was the site of a major battle.

However, upon waking the next day, the Ashanti army was startled to encounter a vast force of not only the Dahomey army, but also forces from the empire of Oyo, a state from modern day Nigeria, and allied regiments from the anti-Ashanti alliance in southern Ghana. Included among these forces was the Mino, also known as the "Dahomey Amazons." This all-female force would prove decisive in the engagement, exploiting a break in the Ashanti lines to chase them back to Kumasi in a bloody retreat. Throughout this pursuit, the Dahomey and their allies captured or killed most of the Ashanti army, including Odankua himself. This battle would go down as the worst defeat in Ashanti history until this point, and would retain this status for the rest of the 18th Century.

The Mino, or "Dahomey Amazons": Pictured posing with their rifles in the 19th Century.

In the end, the battle and its fallout would change Ashanti history. The ailing king Obodom was impeached from power, and a new king would have to be elected. And, while the Dahomey's conquests in the west would not last long, the defeat of the Ashanti at Atakpame would always remain a point of pride for the empire's inhabitants.

S3E7: Kusi Obodom - The Enlightened Ashanti King?

 

Map showing the general areas of control of various factions, including in gold the areas that broke away from Ashanti influence (The Gonja region is said to have rebelled, but that the rebellion was put down pretty quickly)

This episode begins with the collapse of the Ashanti government. As will continue to be a major factor throughout this series, power disputes between the newly created Nsafohene (government bureaucrats) and Amanhene (local governors) came to a head around the end of Opoku Ware's time on the throne. His precarious efforts to balance power between these two institutions resulted in him receiving the favor of neither, and a 1748 coup in Kumasi forced the asantehene to flee from the capital city to Juaben.

When Opoku Ware died in 1750, the tensions between the nsafohene and amanhene boiled over into an outright civil war. The nsafohene supported Dako, Opoku Ware's assigned heir who promised to continue his uncle's policy of centralizing the government's power. The amanhene sided with Kusi Obodom, a half-blind, elderly, and alcoholic ruler who sought to allow more self-government to the amanhene. While the details of the war are lost, after seven years of hard fighting, the amanhenes' faction came out on top.

Despite keeping his promise to delegate much of his power to the amanhenes, Kusi Obodom did actively reform many aspects of Ashanti life, including the empire's law code. Many aspects of Ashanti Law which he viewed as unnecessarily harsh or draconian, including the right to hold accused people in jail before their trial indefinitely, and the punishment of executing people for insulting the golden stool, were abolished, as limits to pre-trial jailtime were instituted and the penalty for insulting the stool was lowered to time in prison. 

Additionally, Ashanti laws at this time were modified to include additional punishments committed by members of abusua (tribes) against members of other abusua. This was done to prevent intertribal conflicts from escalating into cycles of familial violence, and to increase the confidence among tribal families in the ability of the Ashanti state to dole out proper justice.

When reading through Ashanti law-codes, I saw an interesting passage in the section on incest. Ashanti law prohibits sexual activity not only with blood relatives, but with relatives by marriage as well. As the law code lists off which in-laws are off limits, they include a reference to a "sister's wife" as someone you should not court. This provoked further interest in the Ashanti's stance on homosexuality, which I cover in the latest premium episode available on Patreon. The answer is unlikely to be what you expect, as Ashanti society had dramatically different stances on lesbianism and homosexuality among men.

In the end, however, the civil war resulted in the amanhenes controlling much of the true power in the Ashanti Empire. As we'll see, the issue of control between the amanhenes and nsafohenes will not be resolved by this civil war, and remain a common theme throughout Ashanti history.

Ghana continues to have traditional amanhene today, who act as local traditional leaders. Pictured here is the amanhene of Gyadam, a town in Ghana's eastern region.

S3E6: Opoku Ware - the Empire Builder

 

In this episode, we chart the life of Opoku Ware, a man who nobody expected to become the asantehene. He was not among the first in line to become the next king of the Ashanti, nor was he the commander of a strong military. In fact, calling him a man at the start of his reign is a bit misleading, as most estimates believe him to have been a teenager when he was first enstooled. Despite his young age, however, Opoku Ware would not only prove to be a surprisingly successful ruler, but would in fact rescue the Ashanti Empire from the brink of destruction.

James C. Lewis' Take on Opoku Ware

After the death of the first asantehene, Osei Tutu, when on campaign against the Akyem, the nascent Ashanti Empire quickly devolved into infighting. Multiple of Osei Tutu's nephews sought to take their uncle's place on the golden stool, while many local noblemen and military leaders endorsed and supported their favorite candidate. Soon, the question of who would succeed Osei Tutu devolved into a military crisis, and then a civil war. As the Ashanti took up arms against each other, their vassals, enemies, and allies alike sought to take advantage of the turmoil. In the southwest, the vassal king of the Wasa took the opportunity to declare independence from the Ashanti, instead aligning himself with the neighboring Aowin people. To the East, the Ashanti's Akwamu allies entrenched themselves in the conflict, providing arms and men to support their favorite faction in the civil war. However, the crisis reached its highest point in 1716, when the Aowin army launched a raid into Ashanti lands. With the Ashanti busy fighting each other, the Aowin marched uncontested to the Ashanti capital of Kumasi, sacking the city of its valuables and enslaving thousands of the city's inhabitants. The fact that a foreign army could march into an undefended Ashanti city and inflict such damage served as a wakeup call to many of the Ashanti elites. Understanding that the Ashanti had to end the conflict, the various factions of the civil war agreed to a settlement. None of the militant factions would take over. Rather, the next asantehene would be a teenage boy named Opoku Ware, Osei Tutu's grand-nephew. This teenager would, presumably, serve as a weak monarch, but restore the peace. Each faction in the civil war would be pardoned for their actions, and there would be no retribution for past wrongdoings.

With peace restored among the Ashanti, Opoku Ware and the Ashanti army began the long and arduous journey to dealing with their many external foes. The Akyem signed a peace treaty with the Ashanti, while the Aowin, Wasa, Bono, and Gonja were defeated with force of arms. The Akwamu were subdued through surreptitious means. Opoku Ware offered military support to a faction in an ongoing Akwamu succession crisis, reviving the alliance between the Ashanti and the victorious faction. A =fter the Ashanti intervention in the Akwamu succession crisis, many of the Akwamu aligned with the defeated faction were sold into slavery to the Danish at Accra. Finally Opoku Ware threatened the king of Dagbon into becoming a tributary of the Ashanti, an offer which the Dagomba king reluctantly accepted.

After being sold to the Danish, Akwamu slaves staged a nearly successful revolt on the Caribbean island of St. Thomas

By 1747, Opoku Ware had more than doubled Ashanti territory. To administrate his newly conquered states, he set up a new system of bureaucracy. Known as "amanhene", these bureaucrats essentially acted as governors of a conquered region. They had the power to enforce the law, act as judges, collect taxes, and raise local militias. However, their power was not limitless. Each year, these governors were required to make a return journey to Kumasi and take an annual pledge of loyalty to the asantehene.

Despite the frequent pledges of loyalty, the question of the power of the amanhene vs. the power of the central government at Kumasi will become an increasingly tense policy issue throughout the remainder of the podcast. The next episode will focus on how, after all this hard work expanding and strengthening the empire, Opoku Ware's reign will end with the contraction of the imperial territories and a regression back into civil war.

S3E5: The Ashanti Empire is Born at Feyiase

Hope you enjoy the latest episode of the History of Africa podcast. This episode, we picked up right where we left off last time. Osei Tutu is a fugitive prince who has just returned to his hometown of Kumasi, with his Denkyira former captors too busy with wars in the South to pursue him north. However, a lull in the violence in the Denkyira's south allowed them to turn their attention back to the North, and finally focus on recapturing the renegade prince in Kumasi.

However, Osei Tutu was not in a capitulary mood. He had spent the last several years building a powerful army, one which used modern organization, tactics, and bureaucratization. This new force, he hoped, would finally be enough to equal the Denkyira's strength. 

The famous Ashanti golden stool

After luring the Denkyira deeper and deeper into Ashanti territory, the Ashanti army ambushed the Denkiyra at the small village of Feyiase. The shocked Denkyira were routed, and their king was killed in battle. After his victory, Osei Tutu had secured victory for the Ashanti and neutralized the Denkyira threat. With this new, united army at his disposal, he quickly elevated his status from the king of Kumasi to the king of all of the Ashanti, or Asantehene. However, rather than vesting power in himself, the forward looking Osei Tutu decided to technically vest the power into an artifact which would outlive him. The golden stool, a throne which supposedly descended onto Osei Tutu's lap from heaven, would be the true symbol of power in the Ashanti empire. Now that power had been invested into a physical object, Osei Tutu's empire was more likely to outlast his death.

After winning his people's independence, Osei tutu expanded in multiple directions. The remaining Denkyira were turned into vassals, as were the Twifo and Wasa people of the southwest. Then, he invaded the Akyem kingdom to his south east, seizing the half of their kingdom north of the Pra river. However, either while crossing the river or due to the betrayal of his Akwamu advisors, Osei Tutu was ambushed and killed. While a succession dispute would soon cause his kingdom to lose much of its territory, Osei Tutu's forward thinking decision to vest power not in himself but in the golden stool ensured that the political entity of the Ashanti Empire lived on.

Today, Feyiase is a small town in Ghana's Ashanti region. In 1701 it was the site of a dramatic clash between Ashanti and Denkyira armies.

Join us for our next episode, when Osei Tutu's successor will double the Ashanti's territory and reform the empire's government. 

S3E4: A New Ashanti Army

French Illustration of an Ashanti Scout (1884)

I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of the History of Africa podcast. This episode focused on the reorganization of the Ashanti army that took place after Osei Tutu's return in 1695. As of his return, the Ashanti people were still disunited. While the multiple Ashanti kingdoms fought as allies against their common enemy the Dormaa, they were still esssentially multiple armies under one banner. However, Osei Tutu sought to transform this status quo. In order to prepare for the inevitable war against the Denkyira, the King of Kumasi, Osei Tutu, ordered the reorganization of the Ashanti's current cobbled together army of local militias into a single, unified force of professional soldiers. Additionally, Osei Tutu sought to educate this new army in modern Akan tactics, replacing the old manner of traditional battle.

Fante soldiers, which practiced similar modern, firearm dependent tactics to the Denkyira or Akwamu.

These new tactics would be necessary if the Ashanti were going to stand up to the Denkyira. Like the other states in the southern region of Ghana, the Denkyira had adopted modern tactics and fully integrated firearm use into their wartime strategies. If the Ashanti tried to face the modern, gun-wielding tactics of the Denkyira with traditional, sword-wielding Akan tactics, they would be crushed. 

To teach his army in this modern way of warfare, Osei Tutu conscripted the Akwamu soldiers who had accompanied him on his return to Kumasi. Like the Denkyira, the Akwamu had long adapted modern firearms focused tactics and had used them in their own successful wars of conquest. 

The Ashanti army was drilled in the Akwamu strategic doctrine. Akwamu strategy hinged on encircling the enemy. The army was divided into several components. A scouting regiment tracked enemy forces, sabotaged their paths, and launched guerrilla style sniper attacks. The forward guard, composed of the best trained members of the Ashanti army would fiercely attack the enemy, forcing the enemy into a static defensive position. The four wings would then move around the pinned enemy, attempting to encircle the enemy. The main body provided a manpower reserve for whichever part of the army needed reinforcements. Meanwhile, the rear guard of the army sat at the back of the force, protecting against encirclement. Officers and nobility were protected by a specialized group of bodyguards meant to protect these critical people from being hurt or killed in a potential defeat. Finally, the army was accompanied by a horde of medics, engineers, supply transporters, and foragers, meant to support the army in non-combat matters.

While the Ashanti were still new to this type of warfare were far from perfectly implementing this doctrine. Despite this, the Ashanti put this new style of warfare to great use against the Dormaa, decisively defeating their eastern rival when the Dormaa tried to invade Kumasi. But, compared to the coming threat, the Dormaa were small change. During our next episode, we'll see how this new army fares against the centuries old hegemons of the Ghanaian forest region, the Denkyira.

S3E3: The Kingdom of Kumasi

This episode focuses on the rise of the Kwaaman state, sometimes called the kingdom of Kumasi. Kumasi would grow and rise to eventually become the progenitor of the Ashanti Empire, but, in the 17th century, it was merely a small city state that was subject to the much larger Denkyira.

Kumasi was ruled by the Oyoko, one of the most prominent tribes among the Akan. As described in the episode, Akan tribes are a somewhat confusing system. Akan tribes are essentially important extended noble families. While each tribe was usually based primarily in a specific ethnic group, they also occassionally transcended ethnicity. One tribe, the Ekuona, has most of its members among the Fante, but also featured cadet branches among the Ashanti, Denkyira, and other Akan ethnic groups. 

The Eagles Talons: Akan symbol for the Oyoko Tribe, which claims the falcon as its sacred animal.

The Oyoko tribe, itself an offshoot of the Ekuona, rose to prominence by becoming the rulers of the most important city among the Ashanti. Asantemanso, while a small village today, was once a major urban center. Along with the cities of Mampong, Juaben, and Bekwai, the Oyoko kings of Asantemanso acted as the most important powers among the Ashanti. 

However, the history of the Oyoko clan forever changed during the rule of a king named Oti Akenten. Akenten, under the advice of his religious advisor Anokye, made the decision to move his capital city away from Asantemanso. This was, depending on which historians you believe, either to move the Oyoko capital further away from their Denkyira overlords, or to prevent overcrowding in Asantemanso. According to legend, Anokye decided to test the soil fertility of several cities to find the best candidate for a new capital. He planted a sapling of a kum (wild fig) tree in each city and waited to see which soil would produce the largest, healthiest specimen. The small village of Kwaaman produced the best tree, Akenten moved his capital there. Kwaaman's name would be changed to Kumasi, Twi for "City under the Kum Tree."

A kum tree, the species used by Anokye to test the soil of various locations.

After Akenten's eventual death, rule of Kumasi, and informally of the Oyoko, was passed onto his maternal nephew, Obiri Yeboa. Yeboa's rule, however, was one overwhelmingly consumed by chaos. During his rule, the Ashanti states were invaded by the invading Dormaa people from the West, with their armies reaching to the outskirts of Kumasi. Yeboa, to face this threat, organized an alliance between Kumasi and the other major Ashanti cities. This alliance met the Dormaa in battle, and emerged victorious, but at the cost of Yeboa's life. He succumbed to battle wounds shortly after the fight. In his place, his own nephew, Kofi Osei Tutu was meant to take the throne. However, the circumstances surrounding Osei Tutu at the time of his uncle's death made the succession of the throne of Kumasi a little more complicated.

Osei Tutu, like many important heirs of Denkyira subjects, had been held hostage in the Denkyira capital of Abankeseso since the beginning of his adulthood. This was not unusual, as the Denkyira had a long-standing practice of holding the heirs to their subordinate kings as hostage to ensure compliance. However, while he was a captive, Osei Tutu was no prisoner in the traditional sense. Political prisoners like the Oyoko prince were treated with intense respect, thus they have a positive view of the Denkyira when they are eventually released. So, rather than being locked in a dungeon, Osei Tutu was essentially a guest in the Denkyirahene's palace, albeit one that wasn't allowed to leave. His days were spent idly socializing with Denkyira elites, playing Oware, and courting palace women.

Oware, a strategy game similar to mancala, has been a mainstay Akan leisure hobby for centuries.

However, this last activity would eventually land Osei Tutu in some trouble. According to oral traditions of both the Ashanti and Denkyira, Osei Tutu got a little bit too close with the Denkyirahene's daughter, and got her pregnant. Fearing repercussions for this relationship, Osei Tutu was forced to make a daring escape from Abankeseso. However, he couldn't stay in Kumasi, as his uncle was still a Denkyira subject. So, he fled into Akwamu, a neighboring kingdom to the East. There, he remained under the protection of the Akwamuhene, with the king refusing to give up Osei Tutu due to his enmity with the Denkyirahene as well as his own friendship with the Oyoko fetish priest Anokye. So, for the next few years, Osei Tutu hid out in the Akwamu capital. However, when he heard the news of his uncle's death at the hands of the Dormaa, Osei Tutu was forced to return to his home city of Kumasi to take up the mantle of Asantehene. With a small group of Akwamu bodyguards, Osei Tutu made his way back to Kumasi. And that is where our story leaves off for now.

Apologies for changes in background noise and the like during this episode. I recently moved into a new place, so things might be a little bit different. Anyways, thanks for listening.

S3E2 The Denkyira Empire

I hope you enjoyed the latest episode of the History of Africa Podcast, this episode focusing on the rise of the Denkyira Empire, the state which dominated southern Ghana throughout the 16th and 17th centuries.

The story of the Denkyira's rise to power begins with the arrival of the Portuguese on the shores of Ghana in the 15th century. The Denkyira capital, Jukwaa, was located in the perfect spot to act as a middleman between European trade on the coast and the people of the Ghanaian interior to the north. 

The Portuguese Fort at Elmina became one of the most important centers of trade, including the slave trade, in the late 15th century.

As the city of Jukwaa grew in wealth, it also grew in power. By the early 16th century, the city's influence had expanded to the point that its rulers began claiming the title of Denkyirahene, or king of all Denkyiras. And, according to European observers, this was no empty title. The kings of Jukwaa enjoyed more wealth and prestige than any other kingdom in Ghana at the time. European governments and trade companies came to increasingly rely on the Denkyira as their primary trade partner for ivory, gold, and, increasingly throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, slaves.

This 17th Century English arquebus is an example of the type of firearms that European merchants traded with Akan merchants in exchange for gold, slaves, and kola nuts.

The Denkyira profited immensely from their trade with the Europeans, receiving finished products, with firearms being the most crucial. In order to receive an edge on their neighbors, the Denkyira government began importing European firearms en masse. This strategy was effective and allowed the Denkyira to expand their territory along Ghana's coast, at least until their neighbors began similarly importing firearms and adapting their tactics for their use.

Eventually, the Denkyira (and other Akan) did figure out how to manufacture firearms of their own, like this short barreled arquebus. 

While Denkyira craftsmen didn't take long to figure out how to create a domestic manufacturing industry, demand for European products remained high. Fortunately for the Denkyira, they controlled the mine of Obuasi, which they had seized from the kingdom of Twifo in an earlier war. This mine produced a considerable portion of Ghana's gold, and by controlling it the Denkyira had a considerable source of gold to trade with Europeans. However, the fueling of their economy also relied on a nearly endless series of wars with the Fante, Twifo, and Akyem to acquire slaves. This warfare drove a further need to import weapons, creating an ever-escalating military conflict in southern Ghana. Once import needs exceeded the value of the gold produced in Obuasi, the Denkyirahene began demanding ever harsher tribute payments from the empire's Ashanti subjects.

The town of Obuasi was Denkyira's principal gold mine.

If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on our Patreon. Myself and my editor are currently undergoing a major shift in our lives, meaning that the meager income that we receive from the podcast is even more valuable to us these days. So, if you enjoy the free bi-weekly content we put out, please consider sending us a few bucks so we can justify the continual work we put into this enormous endeavor. And to those who already support us, thank you.

S3E1: Ghana's Migration Period

Error: In this episode I claimed that the Adansi were the dominant people in the kingdom of Twifo. This is not true, no idea why I said this. The kingdom was dominated by the Twifo people. Might have been a typo in the script.

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoy listening to the first episode of the third season of the history of Africa podcast. With our exploration of Aksum concluded, we can move onto our coverage of the Ashanti Empire, a fascinating state that dominated the Ghanaian forest region throughout the early modern period. However, before we dive into the history of the Ashanti Empire, we must first understand the cultural, historical, and economic contexts that led to the empire's rise in the first place.

Despite being located on the continent that birthed humanity, human settlement in West Africa may have come later than you might expect. Homo Sapiens arrived in West Africa around the same time as the earliest migrations off the continent, and, of course, initially lived as hunter gatherers. The region experienced an agricultural revolution around 3000 BC, giving rise to the Kintampo Culture. This neolithic culture, likely initiated by migrants from the savanna region to the north, established the first agrarian settlements. However, the Ghanaian forest region would remain incredibly sparsely populated for the next 4000 years.

Starting around 1000 AD, Ghana experienced waves of migration from outside. The first arrivals were the Guang, sometimes called the Guan. The Guang established the first major settlements in Ghana, essentially the first true states. While the government and culture of these early Guang settlements is largely a mystery, the traditions of later arrivals indicate that, at least the northernmost Guan cities, were ruled primarily by a theocratic class of Tindanas (Earth Priests).

The next peoples to arrive in Ghana were the Dagomba and Akan, who arrived roughly during the same time period (estimates range from the 12th to 14th centuries.) The Dagomba, a Muslim ethnic group from the Lake Chad region, set up several independent kingdoms, before they were united into the Empire of Dagbon in the far north of Ghana. The Akan, the group which this podcast will primarily focus on, migrated into Western Ghana from the western Sahel. This region, marked by immense political instability due to the collapse of the Empire of Ouagadou (often called the Empire of Ghana today, but not to be confused with the largely unrelated modern region), was increasingly embracing the faith of Islam. The Akan, staunchly attached to their practice of the traditional faith, which we'll learn more about in future episodes, fled into the forests of Ghana. There, they established a new state at the site of Bono Manso. This city, strategically located on a trade route of gold and salt, established itself not only as an important trade middleman, but also as a center of crafts, pottery, and toolmaking. This wealth allowed the Bono State to expand its influence, and many Akan migrated further South. However, these migrating Akan would not remain culturally united. As they migrated further apart from each other, the dense forests ensured that communication between Akan settlements was sporadic, and as a result different Akan settlements produced significantly different cultures. So, while the Akan would continue to share many cultural traits with each other, such as a shared language and a mostly shared religion, certain aspects of inheritance, politics, and material culture would vary by region. These early splits would eventually manifest in the creation of multiple distinct Akan sub-cultures, including Denkyira, Akwamu, Adansi (Akyem), Kwahu, Fante, and, of course, the Ashanti. Eventually, in the cases of Denkyira, Akwamu, and Adansi, these cultures would soon form the basis of united kingdoms by the end of the 15th century. Finally, a group of people called the Gadangme migrated into southeast Ghana, where they would establish several independent city states of their own, including the major city of Accra.

Error: In the episode I claim that the Ga-Dangme migrated from the region around Lake Chad. There is substantially more debate around this than I imply, and I meant to say that Ga-Dangme traditional history states that they come from Lake Chad. Most modern anthropologists argue for a more local origin North of the Volta River or in northern Nigeria.

The establishment of Bono Manso and the Akan migrations forever changed the economy of West Africa. Prior to the establishment of Bono Manso, the forest region of Ghana was a relatively destitute backwater. The region's economy was dominated almost exclusively by gold panning. This gold would be traded primarily for salt and finished goods to the states of the Sahel and Savanna, who would in turn pedal the gold from the forest to merchants in the North for a profit. While this system was incredibly advantageous to the Sahelian and Savanna states that could act as trade middlemen, it was incredibly disadvantageous to the people of the forest region and the North. Due to Sahelian taxes on traded goods, any goods sold by either side would see a portion of its value siphoned, and, to compensate, any sale of salt or gold in West Africa was at a slightly inflated price. However, the establishment of Bono Manso radically changed this system. For starters, the establishment of a manufacturing center for finished goods ensured that the forest region was no longer dependent on the north for these goods. Additionally, the city's strategic location allowed Bono Manso to act as a middleman between the forest and the Sahel, allowing it to benefit from the siphoning of value for trade.

Map of West African climate zones

This system would remain disadvantageous to the people in the far south, however, until the introduction of a new group of people would radically alter the economics of West Africa further. When European merchants offer a new avenue to sell gold and...other products to the outside world while avoiding Bonoman or Sahelian taxes, the forest region will never be the same. In this new economic status quo, the city of Jukwaa and its Denkyira inhabitants will benefit immensely, and become the first true empire in the history of southern Ghana.

S2E20: Closing the Book + Season 3 Announcement

So, we've finally reached the end of Aksumite history. Now, it's time to get ready for next season. However, I thought it would be nice to address some viewer questions about Aksum in this podcast instead of just hastily moving on.

One of the famous monolithic churches of Lalibela, built by the Zagwe Dynasty

So, I tried only to answer questions in this episode that concerned Aksum itself. However, some of you had some other questions. While I'm going to abstain from answering much about my personal life, someone asked if I went to college. The answer is yes, I have a bachelor's in political science and history from the University of North Carolina. Others wanted to know what the podcast's plans were for covering the remainder of Egyptian history. To answer this, frankly, it's not my call. When we eventually rotate back to North Africa, what topic we cover will be decided by a vote from the Patreon supporters.

Finally,  if you'd like to view the full bibliography for the season, it's available on the season's episode list here.

S2E19: The Fall of the Aksumite Empire Part 2: Gudit, the Woman who Destroyed an Empire

 

We've reached the end of our season on Aksum. As the Aksumite empire collapses back into a chaotic state of struggle between the church, nobility, and king, a mysterious woman from the north descends on the kingdom. Her name was Gudit, a rough portmanteau of Judith, the biblical woman who led an assassination of an Assyrian general, and Gud, the Ge'ez word for monster.

After decades of debate, most scholars have settled on the fact that Gudit was a historical figure, though the details of her life remain incredibly obscure. Her background varies in different sources on Aksumite histories. Some claim she is a disgraced Aksumite princess. Others state she was a Beta Israelite (Jewish) noblewoman from the kingdom of Semien. Many scholars claim she was actually Agaw, while others claim her origins can be identified in Somali and Sidama folklore. Can these contradictory origins be reconciled? Or is Gudit simply a character that we cannot understand from current knowledge.

The evidence for Gudit's historicity comes from a mixture of Aksumite and foreign sources. For example, the Coptic History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria confirms that a woman ruled the Ethiopian highlands after the fall of the Aksumite Empire. Arab sources make similar claims, that a woman dominated the Ethiopian highlands and engaged in political correspondence with the Najahid dynasty of Yemen. Local Ethiopian sources, including written church documents alleged to be contemporaneous with Gudit's rule, are compiled in the church histories of Tekle Hayamanot. Additionally, the oral histories of the Sidama, Agaw, and Somali peoples feature tales of female tyrants who ruled over their male subjects with an iron fist. While these women are rarely explicitly identified as Gudit, their similar era of existence has led many scholars to conclude that Gudit and these women are different historical identities for the same figure.

The details of Gudit's life as presented by scholars are somewhat contradictory. One of the most well known stories that attempts to explain Gudit's future enmity towards the Aksumite church and state claims that Gudit's branch of the royal family fell on hard financial times when they were passed over in the royal succession. To earn money, Gudit began to work as a prostitute. However, Gudit was no woman of the night, but is rather thought of as a highly desired escort. When Gudit received the attraction of an Aksumite deacon, she rejected him, but offered him the challenge of making for her gilded sandals and a gilded parasol to win her affection. He accepted the challenge, but decided to use a holy relic, a golden cloth donated to the church by Saint Ezana himself, to fashion these items. When the locals of Aksum discovered the deacons sacrilegious actions, they blamed Gudit for their destruction. An angry mob mutilated one of her breasts to ensure that she could never seduce men with her beauty again before exiling her from the city.

The Queen Gudit Stele Field. Despite its name, the site's actual relationship to Gudit herself is tenuous.
Photo Courtesy of Wolff Chronicles

However, Gudit did not peacefully accept her exile. After years of planning she returned to Aksum when her spies within the city informed her of government instability. She returned with an army, though the origins of this army vary depending on the version of the story. Traditional accounts claim that Gudit rode with the support of a Syrian Arab prince, but Arab records do not indicate any sort of intervention in Ethiopia during this time. For this reason, most scholars believe that Gudit led an alliance of Aksum's various enemies. The recent revival of Aksumite expansion, the theory goes, led to the formation of an informal anti-Aksumite coalition among the Sidama, Semien, Harla, and possibly some Agaw peoples. This coalition defeated the Aksumite king in battle, and began a reign of terror over the former Aksumite empires. Churches, palaces, and monasteries were laid waste to, and anyone with even a vague relation to the Aksumite royal family was hunted down and eliminated.

That is, unless, you believe the later retellings by the Ethiopian Orthodox church and the Solomonic dynasty. They claim that one member of the Aksumite royal dynasty, Del Naod, escaped Gudit's wrath by fleeing into the Amhara country, where he sired the descendants who would later form the Solomonic dynasty. However, most academic scholars dismiss this story as royal propaganda to link the Solomonic dynasty to Aksum.

Gudit's religion is also a subject of immense debate. Ethiopian tradition generally states that she is Jewish, usually claiming that she converted to the faith after marrying a Jewish spouse. Aksumite church records seem to support this interpretation, with many supposedly contemporary documents compiled by church historian Tekle Hayamanot forthrightly identify her as Jewish, and one even claims that her Jewish beliefs motivated her to convert several churches into synagogues. However, her biographical similarities to several non-Jewish queens from this era has led some scholars to question this interpretation. In this episode, I support the hypothesis that Gudit converted to multiple faiths for the sake of political convenience. That among the Beta Israelites, she professed Judaism, while among the Harla she professed Islam and among the Sidama she professed belief in Paganism. This would explain why her supposed aliases profess so many different faiths, as well as why Arab and Coptic sources are less consistent in identifying her faith than Aksumite records.

S2E18: The Fall of the Aksumite Empire Part 1: Anbasa Wedem, Wise Regent or Cruel Usurper?

 

A Mural from the Dega Istefanos Monastery on Ethiopia's Lake Tana. This monastery is sometimes attributed to the reign of Del Naod, but this is highly contested.

Degna Djan is dead, and his sons, Anbasa Wedem and Del Naod, have begun a struggle for the throne. Or did they? As we dive into this episode, we examine the strange and confounding history behind the end of the Aksumite Empire

S2E17: Degna Jan, the Last Great King of Aksum

Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed the latest episode of the History of Africa podcast. This latest episode focuses on Degna Djan, one of the last kings of Aksum, and, somehow, one of the greatest kings in Aksumite history. During his rule, he oversaw an Aksumite renaissance, leading to the final period of Aksum as the hegemon of East Africa. 

Lake Hayq, one of the likely locations of the Late Aksumite capital of Ku'bar

Despite his importance to Late Aksumite history, Degna Djan is an elusive figure. There are no surviving contemporary depictions of him, and even the exact date of his rule is unknown. However, what sources we do have of his reign are composed of a combination of Coptic church records, the later works of Ethiopian monk Tekle Hayamanot, and the various oral histories of post-Askumite Ethiopia. When compiled and viewed critically, these sources form a picture of an incredibly impressive reign which revitalized the Aksumite Empire and even expanded its frontiers.

Tekle Hayamanot, a prominent Ethiopian saint, abuna, and historian, depicted in a church mural

The primary defining development of Degna Djan's reign was an emphasis on the recentralization of power. Askum, throughout the last several centuries, experienced a gradual decline in the authority of the Negus. The empire's nobility and church had increasingly gained power, with the king now essentially relying on the church as a mechanism to persuade the nobility to respect his authority. Degna Djan, however, cooked up a scheme to recentralize power in his control.

Notably, the kingdom of Aksum had lacked an abuna, or patriarch, to rule its church for several decades. The abuna was typically a foreign (usually Egyptian) bishop. Due to their lack of local connections, the abuna was incredibly dependent on the negus to legitimize his authority, and in turn the abuna gave the negus a greater degree of control over the church. In order to prevent this threat to their power, the increasingly influential priests and bishops of Aksum had long blocked the appointment of a new abuna. However, Degna Djan cleverly schemed to distract them. The Amhara and Agaw communities of the southern Aksumite territories, while technically under Aksumite suzerainty, were only loosely subjects of the empire. While their leaders paid tribute to the Aksumite king, they were largely independent in terms of governance. Many of them even continued to practice traditional religions, as opposed to the staunch Christianity that dominated the interior of the empire. Degna Djan ordered that the church officials, in order to more fully integrate the Amhara and southern Agaw into the Aksumite Empire, should convert the locals to the Orthodox Christianity practiced by the Aksumites.

However, while the majority of priests and bishops led missionaries into the Amhara region, Degna Djan used their absence to appoint a new abuna. The new abuna, Peter, was especially reliant on the king due to the unexpected nature of his appointment, so he acted essentially as a puppet of Degna Djan. With this move, Degna Djan vastly improved his power within the Aksumite state, as he now de-facto commanded the Aksumite church.

With the newly centralized state's resources at his disposal, Degna Djan raised the largest army that Aksum had seen since the era of Kaleb and began a series of conquests against the empire's neighbors. The people of the south and east were relegated into tributaries, while the territories to the north, lost to Beja raids shortly before Degna Djan's rule, were recaptured. 

However, while Degna Djan's reign may seem to be a complete success, his time as Negus would cause several problems in the long run. For starters, he struggled to establish a clear heir, a problem which will have disastrous consequences in our next episode. Next, his conquests resulted in Aksum making many enemies outside its borders. The Sultanate of Showa, Harla, and Semien, especially, were threatened by Degna Djan's aggressive revanchist conquests. These problems would compound in a crisis so great that it would eventually end the now centuries old Aksumite Empire.

S2E16: The War for the Dahlak Islands and the Aksumite Dark Age

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed the latest episode of the podcast. This one was admittedly a little weird because of the circumstances surrounding the history being discussed. The podcast generally tries to focus on history from a narrative perspective, telling the podcast as a linear story. I personally like this format because it makes the show more digestible, personable, and, frankly, entertaining. However, due to the fact that this episode focuses on a historiographic dark age in Aksumite history, writing in a narrative style for this episode was simply impossible. However, the era which encompassed around 600-880 AD, despite being a time with few surviving records, is a crucial era for understanding long-term trends affecting the Aksumite state, economy, and society during its waning years.

The general trend of the era in Aksum during this era was one of decentralization. Economically, the model of centralized cities as the basis of the Aksumite economy declined. Rather than the trade and sale of finished goods and exotic materials, the new Aksumite economy was dominated by subsistence farming of teff. Politically, the once autocratic power of the Aksumite negus was divided among the increasingly powerful Tewhahedo Church and local landowners.

A Village in the Dahlak Islands

In addition to the declining power of the king, the power of the Aksumite merchants also declined during this era. Facing declining influence, the Aksumite merchant class became increasingly desperate. They began waging naval campaigns to reverse their declining fortunes. The main theater of these naval wars was the Dahlak archipelago. This region had been an Aksumite territory for centuries, but had been captured and converted into a prison colony by the Umayyad caliphate. Throughout the 8th and 9th centuries, the Aksumite merchants would repeatedly capture, lose, and recapture control over the islands from various Arabian powers on the Red Sea. At one point, the Aksumite merchants even successfully seized control of some cities on the Arabian coast, with Jeddah being the most prominent.

The City of Jeddah, captured and briefly occupied by Aksumite merchants in the 8th century, is now a major city in Saudi Arabia.

However, by the end of the 10th century, the islands inhabitants had established a local power base strong enough to challenge both Arab and Aksumite domination, resulting in the creation of an independent sultanate on the archipelago. In a final effort to reassert their power, Aksumite merchants made a desperate campaign to capture the island of Socotra in the late 10th century. The initial invasion was a success, with the Aksumite state seemingly endorsing the invasion through the decision to ordain a new bishop on the island. However, less than a decade later, Al-Salt bin Malik, the ruler of Oman, decided to respond to this challenge of Omani trade power in the region. He sent a fleet which successfully dislodged the Aksumites from the island, ending Aksumite merchant power in the Arabian and Red Seas.

S2E15: The Somali Mercantile Age

 

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed the newest episode. This week's episode was a little bit of a weird one. Instead of focusing on a specific period in Aksumite history or Aksumite ruler, this episode focuses on one of the multiple historical trends behind the ongoing (in our show) decline of the Aksumite empire. While we've already touched on the importance of plague, climate change, unrest, and political instability, another of the factors that contributed to Aksum's decline was the increasing out competition of Aksumite merchants by their Somali rivals.

Sort of error in the episode. In this episode, I kind of admittedly exaggerate just how grim Aksumite naval affairs were. While the Aksumite capacity for naval war was essentially destroyed by the raid on Adulis, the merchants of Aksum would quickly recover in this regard. As we'll talk about next episode, Aksumite merchant fleets were, in anything, more aggressive after the fall of Adulis. They fought an extended war over the Dahlak archipelago, and successfully raided Jeddah and Socotra. This isn't to downplay the devastation of the raid either, but just to note that ending the episode on such a bleak note without further listening may lead you to the wrong impression.

The Somali people have always existed in something of a background role in this podcast, with their most significant mention coming in the episode on Kaleb's war, when a group of Somalis (likely from the Dir clan) served as mercenaries during the invasion of Himyar. This episode provides some more details on what exactly the Somali people were doing throughout this era. Those in the northern cities served as an important hub for merchants that travelled between India and Egypt, while those on the Southern coast trafficked in the exotic goods of southern Africa. However, I didn't mention what the average Somali of the inland regions were doing. The answer there was primarily living a lifestyle of nomadic pastoralism. The Somali peninsula was one of the first regions of sub-saharan Africa to make widespread use of the geel, while also herding sheep and goats. Much like how the Aksumite empire was essentially a group of cities dependent on the vast tracts of farmland in between, the same applies to Somalia except with massive herds of sheep instead of teff fields. This, however, was less true in southern Somalia, or the Shebelle region. This relatively fertile region could maintain a combination of agrarian and pastoral living.

However, while Somali cities were able to acquire a degree of wealth from trading on the Indian ocean, the potential profits of these commercial ventures were severely limited by the Aksumite domination of Red Sea trade. By dominating the only trade route through the Red Sea, Aksumite merchants were able to successfully insert themselves between Somali merchants and markets in Egypt and the Mediterranean as middlemen. Additionally, Aksumite merchants engaged in direct competition by ferrying goods from India to Egypt, offering lower princes by avoiding the tarriffs that Aksum levelled on foreigners.

However, as Aksumite power in the Red Sea diminished over the 6th century, Somali merchants were able to break the Aksumite monopoly over the Red Sea. Additionally, the conversion of many urban Somalis to Islam gave them a competitive advantage when trading with the growing Muslim powers of the middle east. Somalis could avoid the Jizya tax that the caliphate leveled against non-Muslims, while also generally achieving better relations with Muslim states through the adoption of a common faith.

A small version of a Somali woven ship, called a beden.

With Somali merchants now outcompeting Aksumite merchants, Somali city states began a golden age of economic prosperity. From the 8th until the 17th century, Somali merchants maintained a dominant grip on trade in the Western Indian Ocean.

An early modern depiction of a larger Somali ship from a European atlas