Egypt is not the only state in Africa where a high culture has existed and developed since ancient times. Many peoples of Africa have long been able to smelt and process iron and other metals. Maybe they learned this before the Europeans. Modern Egyptians speak Arabic, and a significant part of them really come from the Arabs, but the ancient population of Egypt came to the Nile Valley from the Sahara desert, which in ancient times had abundant rivers and rich vegetation. In the center of the Sahara, on the plateaus, drawings on the rocks, carved with a sharp stone or painted with paint, have been preserved. These drawings show that in those days the population of the Sahara was engaged in hunting wild animals, raising livestock: cows, horses.
On the northern African coast and the islands adjacent to it lived tribes who knew how to make large boats and successfully engaged in fishing and other marine activities.
In the first millennium BC. e. in ancient settlements on the shores of North Africa, the Phoenicians appeared, and later the Greeks. The Phoenician city-colonies - Utica, Carthage, etc. - strengthened over time and, under the rule of Carthage, united into a powerful state.
The neighbors of Carthage, the Libyans, created their own states - Numidia and Mauritania. From 264 to 146 BC e. Rome was at war with the Carthaginian state. After the destruction of the city of Carthage, the Roman province of Africa was created on its territory. Here, by the labor of Libyan slaves, a strip of coastal desert was turned into a flourishing land. Slaves dug wells, built stone water tanks, built large cities with stone houses, water pipes, etc. Later, the cities of Roman Africa suffered from the invasions of German vandals, and later these areas became a colony of the Byzantine Empire, and, finally, in the VIII-X centuries. this part of North Africa was conquered by the Muslim Arabs and became known as the Maghreb.
In the Nile Valley, south of the territory of ancient Egypt, the Nubian kingdoms of Napata and Meroe existed even before our era. Until now, the ruins of ancient cities, small pyramids similar to ancient Egyptian ones, as well as monuments of ancient Meroitic writing have been preserved there. Later, the Nubian kingdoms were conquered by the kings of the powerful state of Aksum, which developed in the first centuries of our era on the territory of present-day South Arabia and Northern Ethiopia.
Sudan stretches from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the Nile.
From North Africa to the country of Sudan it was possible to penetrate only along the ancient caravan roads that passed along the dried up channels of the ancient rivers of the Sahara desert. During poor rains, some water sometimes collected in the old channels, and in some places wells were dug by the ancient inhabitants of the Sahara.
The people of Sudan grew millet, cotton and other plants; raised livestock - cows and sheep. Bulls were sometimes ridden on horseback, but they did not know how to plow the land with their help. The soil for crops was cultivated with wooden hoes with iron tips. Iron in Sudan was smelted in small clay blast furnaces. Weapons, knives, hoe tips, axes and other tools were forged from iron. Initially, blacksmiths, weavers, dyers and other artisans were simultaneously engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding. They often exchanged surplus products of their craft for other goods. Bazaars in Sudan were located in villages on the borders of the territories of various tribes. The population of these villages grew rapidly. Part of it grew rich, seized power and gradually subjugated the poor. Military campaigns against neighbors, if successful, were accompanied by the capture of prisoners and other military booty. Prisoners of war were not killed, but forced to work. Thus, in some settlements that grew into small towns, slaves appeared. They began to be sold in the markets, like other goods.
Ancient Sudanese cities often waged wars among themselves. The rulers and nobility of one city often subjugated several surrounding cities to their power.
For example, around the ninth century n. e. in the very west of Sudan, in the Auker area (the territory of the northern part of the modern state of Mali), the state of Ghana, which was strong at that time, was formed.
Ancient Ghana was the center of trade between Western Sudan and North Africa, which was very important for the prosperity and power of this state.
In the XII century. Muslim Berbers from the Maghreb state of the al-Moravids, in northern Africa, attracted by the wealth of Ghana, attacked it and destroyed the state. The remote southern region - Mali - suffered the least from the defeat. One of the rulers of Mali, by the name of Sundiata, who lived in the middle of the 13th century, gradually seized the entire former territory of Ghana and even annexed other lands to it. After that, the state of Mali began to occupy a much larger territory than Ghana. However, the continuous struggle with neighbors gradually led to the weakening of the state and its disintegration.
In the XIV century. scattered and weak cities of the state of Mali were captured by the rulers of the city of Gao - the center of a small state of the Songhai people. The Songhai kings gradually united under their rule a vast territory, on which there were many large cities. One of these cities, which existed back in the days of the state of Mali, Timbuktu became the cultural center of the entire Western Sudan. The inhabitants of the Songhai state were Muslims.
Medieval Muslim scholars from Timbuktu became known far beyond Western Sudan. They first created writing in the languages of Sudan, using the signs of the Arabic alphabet for this. These scientists have written many books, including chronicles - books on the history of the states of Sudan. Sudanese architects built large and beautiful houses, palaces, mosques with six-story minarets in Timbuktu and other cities. The cities were surrounded by high walls.
In the XVI century. The sultans of Morocco repeatedly tried to conquer the Songhai state. They eventually conquered it, destroying Timbuktu and other cities in the process. In the burning Timbuktu, wonderful libraries with valuable ancient manuscripts perished. Many architectural monuments were destroyed. Sudanese scientists, architects, doctors, astronomers - taken into slavery by the Moroccans, almost all died on the way through the desert. The remnants of the riches of the cities were plundered by the nomadic neighbors - the Tuareg and the Fulani. The huge state of Songhai broke up into many small and weak states.
Since that time, trade caravan routes leading from Lake Chad through the inland region of the Sahara - Fezzan - to Tunisia have been of primary importance. In the northern part of the territory of modern Nigeria until the XIX century. there were independent small states (sultanates) of the Hausa people. The Sultanate included the city with the surrounding countryside. The richest and most famous was the city of Kano.
The western part of tropical Africa, located off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, among the Portuguese, Dutch and English navigators of the 15th-18th centuries. was named Guinea. Navigators did not suspect for a long time that densely populated areas with large populous cities were hiding behind the wall of tropical vegetation of the Guinean coast. European ships landed on the coast and traded with the coastal population. Ivory, precious woods, and sometimes gold were brought here from the interior. European merchants also bought prisoners of war, who were taken from Africa, first to Portugal, and later to the Spanish colonies in Central and South America. Hundreds of slaves were loaded onto sailing ships and transported almost without food and water across the Atlantic Ocean. Many of them died along the way. The Europeans in every possible way fomented wars between the tribes and peoples of Guinea in order to get more slaves. European merchants of the XV-XVI centuries. I really wanted to penetrate into the rich interior regions of Guinea. However, tropical forests and swamps, as well as the resistance of strong, well-organized states, prevented this for several centuries. Only a few people managed to get there. When they returned, they talked about large, well-planned cities with wide streets, rich palaces of kings, well-armed guards, wonderful bronze and stone works of art by local craftsmen, and many other amazing things.
Cultural values and historical monuments of these ancient states were destroyed by Europeans in the 19th century. during the colonial partition of West Africa. In our century, in the forests of Guinea, researchers discovered the remains of an ancient African culture: broken stone statues, heads made of stone and bronze, ruins of palaces. Some of these archaeological sites date back to the 1st millennium BC. e., when most of Europe was still inhabited by wild tribes.
In 1485, the Portuguese navigator Diego Cano discovered the mouth of the deep African Congo River. During the following voyages, the ships of the Portuguese went up the river and reached the state of the Congo. They brought with them ambassadors from the Portuguese king, as well as preacher monks who were instructed to convert the population of the Congo to Christianity. Portuguese monks left notes that tell about the medieval state of the Congo and neighboring states - Lunda, Luba, Kasongo, Bushongo, Loango, etc. The population of these countries, as well as Guinea, was engaged in agriculture: they grew yams, taro, sweet potatoes and other plants .
Local craftsmen were famous for the art of making various wood products. Blacksmithing was of great importance.
All these states fell into decay and collapsed as a result of prolonged wars with the Portuguese, who tried to conquer them.
The east coast of Africa is washed by the Indian Ocean. In winter, the wind (monsoon) blows here from the shores of Asia to the shores of Africa, and in the summer in the opposite direction. Since ancient times, the peoples of Asia and Africa have used the monsoon winds for merchant shipping. Already in the 1st century on the east coast of Africa there were permanent trading posts where the local population exchanged ivory, tortoiseshell shields and other goods for metal tools, weapons and fabrics from Asian merchants. Sometimes merchants from Greece and Egypt sailed here along the Red Sea.
Later, when some trading settlements grew into large cities, their inhabitants - Africans (the Arabs called them "Swahili", that is, "coastal") - began to sail to Asian countries themselves. They traded in ivory, copper and gold, the skins of rare animals and valuable wood. Swahili bought these goods from peoples who lived far from the ocean shores, in the depths of Africa. Swahili merchants bought elephant tusks and rhinoceros horns from the leaders of various tribes, and gold was exchanged in the country of Makaranga for glassware, porcelain and other goods brought from overseas.
When merchants in Africa collected so much cargo that their porters could not carry it, then they bought slaves or took away by force people from some weak tribe. As soon as the caravan reached the shore, the merchants sold the porters into slavery or took them overseas for sale.
Over time, the most powerful cities of the East African coast subjugated the weaker ones and formed several states: Pate, Mombasa, Kilva, etc. Many Arabs, Persians and Indians moved to them. Scholars in East African cities created a script in Swahili, using, as in Sudan, the signs of Arabic writing. Literary works existed in the Swahili language, as well as annals of the history of cities.
During the voyages of Vasco da Gama to India, Europeans first visited the ancient Swahili cities. The Portuguese repeatedly conquered and again lost East African cities, while many of them were destroyed by the invaders, and the ruins eventually became overgrown with thorny tropical shrubs. And now only in folk legends the names of ancient African cities have been preserved.
The development of African countries was very diverse. Its north was part of the Arab Caliphate, south of the Sahara, under the influence of Islam and trade with the Arabs, large states arose. Ethiopia has gone through a different historical path.
Nature itself divided Africa into two unequal parts. In the northern part, adjacent to the Mediterranean and Red Seas, centers of civilization arose from ancient times. Ancient Egypt, Phoenician and Greek colonies, Ancient Rome, the kingdom of the Vandals, Byzantium succeeded each other here. In the 7th century Arabs captured the entire coast of North Africa to the Atlantic. They called the lands to the west of Egypt the Maghreb, that is, the western lands. Huge cities flourished there, such as Fez and Tangier, outstanding monuments of Muslim architecture were created. From the Maghreb to the south, through the Sahara desert, caravan routes led to Tropical Africa. The Arabs called it Bilad as-Sudan (Country of Blacks) or simply Sudan. Numerous Negro peoples lived there.
Most of Africa is occupied by deserts, savannas, rainforests. Being in different natural conditions, the peoples of Africa developed in different ways. Rainforest dwellers such as stunted pygmies engaged in hunting and gathering. And to the north and south of them, in the savannas, lived farmers and cattle-waters.
At the turn of our era, many peoples of Tropical Africa learned how to produce iron. Iron tools made it possible to obtain higher yields and contributed to the development of handicrafts.
Western Sudan
Arabs from the Maghreb traded with Western Sudan - lands between the Sahara and the Gulf of Guinea, rich in gold. In addition to gold, they also traded in salt, cattle, and ivory. The cities of Timbuktu, Djenne and others grew along the trade routes.
The most ancient state of Western Sudan was Ghana, so rich in gold that even the title of its ruler meant "master of gold." This allowed the rulers to maintain a lush courtyard and army. The heyday of Ghana dates back to the 10th-11th centuries, then it weakened in the 13th century. was captured by the neighboring state of Mali. The power of Mali in the XIII - the first half of the XIV century. was also based on trading in gold. The gold coins that were in use in the Mediterranean at that time were minted primarily from the gold of Mali.
Duties from merchants enriched the local rulers; their power increased. They lived in palaces, surrounded by courtiers, officials and warriors. Their power was considered sacred, and they themselves were mediators between their people and the gods. When Islam began to penetrate into Western Sudan, it was the first to be accepted by the rulers, their entourage, residents of large cities. With Islam, Arab culture also penetrated here, mosques and madrasahs were built. And ordinary farmers and pastoralists retained pagan beliefs for a long time. Religious differences exacerbated property inequality.
The ruler of Mali was especially famous for his wealth Musa(1312-1337), a former zealous Muslim. His hajj to Mecca is perhaps the most expensive journey in history. For travel expenses, a camel caravan carried one hundred bales of gold, weighing 12 tons. The East for a long time remembered the wealth of the rulers of Mali, and Mali's ties with the countries of Islam were strengthened. material from the site
Christian Ethiopia
Ethiopia is located in northeast Africa. The Aksumite kingdom that existed here already in the 4th century BC. converted to Christianity and managed to defend it in the fight against Islam. Later it broke up into separate principalities, but in the XIII century. in Ethiopia, a strong state was revived. Its rulers traced their family back to the biblical Solomon. In Europe they were called emperors.
With the spread of Christianity in Ethiopia, churches and monasteries were built. Chronicles were compiled in the monasteries, works of ancient and medieval authors were translated. In the XII-XIII centuries. the flowering of Ethiopian art began. In the capital of Ethiopia, Lalibe-le, churches were usually not built, but were carved from stone and decorated on the outside with carvings, and inside with frescoes and icons.
In search of allies against the Muslims Ethiopia in the XV-XVI centuries. negotiated with Western countries, although Ethiopian Christianity was closer to Orthodoxy than to Catholicism. Her delegation participated in the work of the Ferrara-Florence Cathedral. In Europe, she was also seen as an ally against the Muslims.
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Lesson plan
- Repetition of the past.
- Lesson assignment.
- Introduction.
- The peoples of Africa;
- West Africa;
- East Africa;
- Culture of Africa;
- Consolidation.
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Repetition of the past
Complete the task.
slide 4
Assignment for the lesson
Why did African states lag behind European countries in their development?
slide 5
Introduction.
Many historians believed that the peoples of most of Africa, inhabited by blacks, did not create anything of value in culture, and their history began with the advent of Europeans. The study of the history of the African continent, which began relatively recently, refuted this theory.
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1. Peoples of Africa
The peoples of Africa in different parts of the continent developed unevenly. Pygmies, Bushmen and others lived in the tropical forests of Central Africa. They were hunters and gatherers. The nomads of the South Sahara raised cattle and exchanged them for the products and things they needed.
a photo. pygmiesSlide 7
peoples of africa
Other peoples were engaged in agriculture. Most of all, millet and rice were sown, beans and vegetables were grown, cotton, sugar cane and coconut palms were planted. Africans have been smelting iron in clay ovens since ancient times. Craftsmen made tools, weapons, utensils, fabrics, glass and leather items. Africans early learned to tame elephants, used them for various jobs and battles.
a photo. african houseSlide 8
In the expanses of the plain between the Niger and Senegal rivers, in the valleys of these rivers, Western Sudan is located. A lot of gold was mined here. There were legends about the wealth of Sudan in the Middle Ages. One of the Arab geographers reported that here "gold grows in the sand, just like carrots, and it is collected at sunrise." The most important trade routes from the Gulf of Guinea to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea passed through Western Sudan. Farmers traded with the nomads who lived on the border of the Sahara: in exchange for salt, skins and cattle, the nomads received grain and handicrafts. The path through the Sahara desert was difficult and dangerous. More than a dozen caravans died here from thirst or attacks by nomads.
a photo. PortSlide 9
West Africa
The most ancient state of Sudan was Ghana, which reached power in the 10th century. The king of Ghana and the tribal nobility became rich from the trade in gold and salt. The king had a large army, consisting of detachments of archers and cavalry.
In the capital of Ghana, a special royal quarter with a palace, a sanctuary and a prison was enclosed by walls. Solemn royal receptions were held here. Mosques and houses of Arab merchants were built in another part of the city.
a photo. Archer WarriorsSlide 10
At the end of the XI century, the troops of the Sultan of the Arab state of Morocco (North Africa) captured and destroyed the capital of Ghana. The king undertook to pay tribute to the Sultan and, together with the nobility, converted to Islam. The rebellious population soon expelled the Moroccans, but the territory of Ghana was reduced, it submitted to the state of Mali.
a photo. Settlement in Malislide 11
The heyday of Mali dates back to the 13th century, when its rulers conquered neighboring territories, where caravan routes passed and gold was mined. The ruler and his associates converted to Islam. After that, Muslim merchants from North Africa settled in the cities.
rice. Mansa Musa - Ruler of Malislide 12
Later, in the 15th century, the Songhai state strengthened. The expansion of its borders was achieved during the reign of the energetic, militant Ali Ber (1464-1492). He built a large river fleet; severe discipline was introduced in the army. Ali Ber spent most of his life on campaigns. He managed to annex the main cities of Sudan to his possessions. In African tales and legends, Ali Ber appears as a magician who could fly, become invisible and turn into a snake.
rice. Ali Berslide 13
The rulers and nobles kept 500-1000 dependent people on their lands, who were settled in special settlements. Dependent people paid dues to the owner, and taxes to the state. Free community members also depended on the nobility.
Since the middle of the 16th century, Songhai has been rapidly weakening. The relatives of the ruler, occupying high positions, conspired, the influential Muslim nobility in the cities had little regard for the rulers. The outbreak of internecine wars led the state into decline. At the end of the 16th century, Songhai was defeated by the troops of the Sultan of Morocco.
rice. Field workSlide 14
East Africa
In the north of present-day Ethiopia, in ancient times, there was the state of Aksum, which flourished in the 4th-5th centuries. The coast of South Arabia with caravan routes and part of Eastern Sudan fell under the rule of his kings.
a photo. Castle in Ethiopiaslide 15
Aksum maintained close ties with the Roman Empire, and later with Byzantium. The king and his entourage adopted the Christian faith. Writing was created in the country. In the 7th century, the Arabs took possession of Aksum in South Arabia, and then attacked it. The state broke up into separate principalities; princes waged a fierce struggle for the throne. Aksum ceased to exist in the 10th century.
a photo:
Ethiopian Christian manuscript
Ethiopian Orthodox clergyslide 16
City-states sprang up on the east coast of Africa. Arabs, Iranians, Indians willingly settled in them. Large ships were built here, there were many experienced sailors. Merchants from these cities sailed on their ships in the Indian Ocean, traded with India, Iran and other Asian countries.
rice. trade routesSlide 17
African culture
The peoples of Africa have preserved ancient legends, traditions and fairy tales, where real events of the past are mixed with fiction. The storytellers carefully kept these legends, passed them down from generation to generation.
a photo. African in national dressSlide 18
The most significant were the achievements of medieval culture among the peoples of Western Sudan. After the spread of Islam, Arab architects built mosques, palaces, and public buildings there.
a photo. Mosque in MaliSlide 19
Muslim schools arose, and in the city of Timbuktu - a higher school, where they studied theology, history, law, mathematics, and astronomy. Scientists have created writing based on local languages. Libraries were founded, where many handwritten books were stored. Books were sold in shops, and, according to a contemporary, they received "more profit than from other goods."
a photo. Entrance to the mosque in Timbuktu
rice. TombuwhoSlide 20
When Moroccan troops conquered Timbuktu and other cities in Sudan, architectural structures and libraries were destroyed. Scientists and artisans were driven into slavery, and almost all of them died on the way through the desert.
rice. Sudan. At the ruined templeslide 21
Africans had considerable achievements in art. Ancient wooden and bronze sculptures and masks amaze with expressiveness. Bronze plaques with bas-reliefs (convex images) of kings and nobles, scenes of hunting, war and court life were found in the royal palace in Benin.
a photo.ritual maskAnchoring
Complete the task.
Slide 25
Used materials
- Agibalova E.V., Donskoy G.M. History of the Middle Ages Grade 6 / textbook for secondary schools. - M.: Enlightenment, 2008
- Illustrations: Devyataikina N.I. History of the Middle Ages: Textbook. 6th grade. Part 1 / Devyataikina N. I. - M .: OLMAPRESS, 2008.
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Kanku Musa's pilgrimage to Mecca
Kanku Musa was the most famous ruler of Mali. His pilgrimage (hajj) to holy places in 1324 became known throughout the Muslim world. On the way, he was accompanied by a retinue of 8 thousand soldiers and no less number of slaves; camels were loaded with up to a hundred packs of gold weighing about 12 tons. In every city where Kanku Musa arrived on Friday, he ordered the construction of a mosque. Even in the center of the Sahara, he ate fresh fish, which messengers brought him, and for bathing his beloved wife they dug a huge pool and filled it with water from wineskins.
Arriving in Cairo, Kanku Musa, without bargaining, paid any price for goods and distributed alms in huge sums. In Mecca, he bought houses and plots of land for black pilgrims. In the end, the money accumulated by generations of subjects, Musa ran out, but he was so trusted that the Cairo merchant lent a large amount. Hajj to Mecca strengthened the authority of the ruler of Mali among Muslims.View all slides
The history of the peoples of Africa goes back to ancient times. In the 60-80s. 20th century on the territory of South and East Africa, scientists found the remains of human ancestors - Australopithecus monkeys, which allowed them to suggest that Africa could be the ancestral home of mankind (see Formation of mankind). In the north of the continent, about 4 thousand years ago, one of the most ancient civilizations arose - the ancient Egyptian, which left numerous archaeological and written monuments (see Ancient East). One of the most populated regions of Ancient Africa was the Sahara with abundant vegetation and a diverse wildlife.
Starting from the III century. BC e. there was an active process of migration of Negroid tribes to the south of the continent, associated with the advance of the desert to the Sahara. In the 8th century BC e. - IV century. n. e. in the northeast of Africa, there were the states of Kush and Meroe, connected in many respects with the culture of Ancient Egypt. Ancient Greek geographers and historians called Africa Libya. The name "Africa" appeared at the end of the 4th century. BC e. at the Romans. After the fall of Carthage, the Romans founded the province of Africa on the territory adjacent to Carthage, then this name spread to the entire continent.
North Africa met the early Middle Ages under the rule of barbarians (Berbers, Goths, Vandals). In 533-534. it was conquered by the Byzantines (see Byzantium). In the 7th century they were replaced by the Arabs, which led to the Arabization of the population, the spread of Islam, the formation of new state and social relations, and the creation of new cultural values.
In antiquity and the early Middle Ages in West Africa, three large states arose, replacing each other. Their formation is associated with the expansion of intercity trade in the Niger River basin, pastoral agriculture, and the widespread use of iron. Written sources about the first of them - the state of Ghana - appear in the 8th century. with the arrival of the Arabs in Africa south of the Sahara, and oral traditions date back to the 4th century BC. Its heyday belongs to the VIII-XI centuries. Arab travelers called Ghana the country of gold: it was the largest supplier of gold to the Maghreb countries. Here, crossing the Sahara, caravan routes passed to the north and south. By its nature, it was an early class state, whose rulers controlled the transit trade in gold and salt and imposed a high duty on it. In 1076, the capital of Ghana, the city of Kumbi-Sale, was captured by newcomers from Morocco - the Almoravids, who initiated the spread of Islam. In 1240, the Malinke king from the state of Mali, Sundiata, subjugated Ghana.
In the XIV century. (the time of its highest prosperity) the vast state of Mali stretched from the Sahara to the edge of the forest in the south of Western Sudan and from the Atlantic Ocean to the city of Gao; its ethnic basis was the Malinke people. The cities of Timbuktu, Djenne, and Gao became important centers of Muslim culture. Within Malian society, early feudal forms of exploitation spread. The well-being of the state was based on income from caravan trade, agriculture along the banks of the Niger, and cattle breeding in the savannah strip. Mali has been repeatedly invaded by nomads and neighboring peoples; dynastic strife led to its demise.
The state of Songhai (the capital of Gao), which came to the fore in this part of Africa after the fall of Mali, continued the development of the civilization of Western Sudan. Its main population was the Songhai people, who still live along the banks of the middle reaches of the Niger River. By the 2nd half of the 16th century. an early feudal society developed in Songai; at the end of the 16th century. he was captured by the Moroccans.
In the area of Lake Chad in the early Middle Ages, the states of Kanem and Bornu (IX-XVIII centuries) existed.
The normal development of the states of Western Sudan was put to an end by the European slave trade (see Slavery, Slave trade).
Meroe and Aksum are the most significant states of Northeast Africa between the 4th century BC. BC e. and VI century. n. e. The kingdoms of Kush (Napata) and Meroe were located on the territory of the north of modern Sudan, the state of Aksum - on the Ethiopian highlands. Kush and Meroe represented a late phase of ancient Oriental society. Few archaeological sites have survived to this day. In the temples and on the steles near Napata, several inscriptions in the Egyptian language have been preserved, which allow us to judge the political life of the state. The tombs of the rulers of Napata and Meroe were built in the form of pyramids, although they were much smaller than those of Egypt (see Seven Wonders of the World). The transfer of the capital from Napata to Meroe (Meroe was located about 160 km north of modern Khartoum) was apparently associated with the need to reduce the danger from the invasions of the Egyptians and Persians. Meroe was an important center of trade between Egypt, the states of the Red Sea coast and Ethiopia. An iron ore processing center arose near Meroe, iron from Meroe was exported to many African countries.
The heyday of Meroe covers the III century. BC e. - I century. n. e. Slavery here, just as in Egypt, was not the main thing in the system of exploitation, the main hardships were borne by the village community members - plowmen and pastoralists. The community paid taxes and supplied labor for the construction of pyramids and irrigation systems. The civilization of Meroe is still insufficiently explored - we still know little about the daily life of the state, its relations with the outside world.
The state religion followed the Egyptian models: Amon, Isis, Osiris - the gods of the Egyptians - were also the gods of the Meroiites, but along with this, purely Meroitic cults also arise. The Meroiites had their own written language, the alphabet contained 23 letters, and although its study began as early as 1910, the Meroe language still remains difficult to access, making it impossible to decipher the surviving written monuments. In the middle of the IV century. King Ezana of Aksum inflicted a decisive defeat on the Meroitic state.
Aksum is the forerunner of the Ethiopian state, its history shows the beginning of the struggle waged by the peoples of the Ethiopian highlands to preserve their independence, religion and culture in a hostile environment. The emergence of the Aksumite kingdom dates back to the end of the 1st century BC. BC e., and its heyday - to the IV-VI centuries. In the IV century. Christianity became the state religion; monasteries arose throughout the country, exerting great economic and political influence. The population of Aksum led a settled way of life, being engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding. Wheat was the most important crop. Irrigation and terraced agriculture developed successfully.
Aksum was an important trade center connecting Africa with the Arabian Peninsula, where in 517-572. he belonged to South Yemen, but the powerful Persian power ousted Aksum from the south of Arabia. In the IV century. Aksum established ties with Byzantium, controlled the caravan routes from Adulis along the Atbara River to the middle reaches of the Nile. The Aksumite civilization brought cultural monuments to our days - the remains of palaces, epigraphic monuments, steles, the largest of which reached a height of 23 m.
In the 7th century n. e., with the beginning of the Arab conquests in Asia and Africa, Aksum lost its power. Period from the 8th to the 13th century. characterized by deep isolation of the Christian state, and only in 1270 begins its new rise. At this time, Aksum loses its importance as the political center of the country, it becomes the city of Gondar (to the north of Lake Tana). Simultaneously with the strengthening of the central government, the role of the Christian church also increased, the monasteries concentrated large land holdings in their hands. Slave labor began to be widely used in the country's economy; corvée and in-kind deliveries are being developed.
The rise also affected the cultural life of the country. Such monuments are being created as chronicles of the life of kings, church history; the works of Copts (Egyptians professing Christianity) on the history of Christianity, world history are translated. One of the outstanding Ethiopian emperors - Zera-Yaikob (1434-1468) is known as the author of works on theology and ethics. He advocated strengthening ties with the Pope, and in 1439 the Ethiopian delegation took part in the Florentine Cathedral. In the XV century. The embassy of the king of Portugal visited Ethiopia. The Portuguese at the beginning of the 16th century assisted the Ethiopians in the fight against the Muslim Sultan of Adal, hoping then to penetrate the country and capture it, but failed.
In the XVI century. the decline of the medieval Ethiopian state began, torn apart by feudal contradictions, subjected to raids by nomads. A serious obstacle to the successful development of Ethiopia was its isolation from the centers of trade relations on the Red Sea. The process of centralization of the Ethiopian state began only in the 19th century.
On the east coast of Africa, the trading city-states of Kilwa, Mombasa, and Mogadishu grew up in the Middle Ages. They had extensive ties with the states of the Arabian Peninsula, Asia Minor and India. The Swahili civilization arose here, absorbing African and Arab culture. Starting from the X century. Arabs played an increasing role in the ties of the east coast of Africa with a large number of Muslim states in the Middle East and South Asia. The appearance of the Portuguese at the end of the XV century. disrupted the traditional ties of the eastern coast of Africa: a period of long-term struggle of the African peoples against the European conquerors began. The history of the interior regions of this region of Africa is not well known due to the lack of historical sources. Arabic sources of the 10th century. It was reported that between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers there was a large state with a large number of gold mines. The civilization of Zimbabwe (its heyday dates back to the beginning of the 15th century) is best known during the period of the Monomotapa state; Numerous public and religious buildings have survived to this day, testifying to the high level of building culture. The collapse of the Monomotapa empire came at the end of the 17th century. due to the expansion of the Portuguese slave trade.
In the Middle Ages (XII-XVII centuries), in the south of West Africa, there was a developed culture of the Yoruba city-states - Ife, Oyo, Benin, etc. Crafts, agriculture, and trade reached a high level of development in them. In the XVI-XVIII centuries. these states took part in the European slave trade, which led them to decline at the end of the 18th century.
A large state of the Gold Coast was the confederation of Amanti states. This is the most developed feudal formation in West Africa in the 17th-18th centuries.
In the Congo River basin in the XIII-XVI centuries. there were early class states of the Congo, Lunda, Luba, Bushongo, etc. However, with the advent in the 16th century. the Portuguese, their development was also interrupted. There are practically no historical documents about the early period of development of these states.
Madagascar in the 1st-10th centuries developed in isolation from the mainland. The Malagasy who inhabited it were formed as a result of a mixture of newcomers from Southeast Asia and Negroid peoples; the population of the island consisted of several ethnic groups - gelding, sokalava, betsimisarak. In the Middle Ages, the kingdom of Imerina arose in the mountains of Madagascar.
The development of medieval Tropical Africa, due to natural and demographic conditions, and also because of its relative isolation, lagged behind North Africa.
The penetration of Europeans at the end of the XV century. was the beginning of the transatlantic slave trade, which, like the Arab slave trade on the east coast, delayed the development of the peoples of Tropical Africa, caused them irreparable moral and material damage. On the threshold of a new era, Tropical Africa turned out to be defenseless against the colonial conquests of Europeans.
In the East, in ancient times, under the influence of Egypt and trade relations between the Mediterranean, Arabia and India, the states of Nubia and Aksum (present-day Ethiopia) arose. Starting from the 7th century, Arab and Berber merchants brought salt, highly valued in Africa, and some other goods from the Mediterranean to the western Sudanese lands. At the intersection of trade routes, shopping centers began to grow: Aukar, Ghana, Timbuktu, Gao, Mali, etc. They were inhabited mainly by Muslim merchants and local trade nobility. They gradually seized power in the resulting medieval states. In the Middle Ages, the first states formed in the basins of the Niger and Senegal rivers: Ghana, Mali, Songhai. The earliest of these in Western Sudan was Ghana. It arose in the 8th century, and in the 10th century. reached the pinnacle of its power.
Remember!
Ghana, Mali, Songhai and Aksum are the first medieval states of Africa.One of the main sources of income for the Ganges was the trade duty paid by visiting merchants, Arabs, Berbers, and Jews. However, its main wealth was gold.
The trade in gold and salt brought great income to the ruler of Ghana and its nobility.
The ruler had a large army, consisting of 200 thousand soldiers, 40 thousand of them were archers and a large cavalry army. There were legends about the wealth of Arab merchants and the countless treasures of the ruler of Ghana. This attracted the attention of warlike neighboring tribes to her. In 1076
The Sultan of Morocco, Abu Bekr, at the head of the Muslim army, conquered Ghana and plundered it. The ruler of Ghana undertook to pay tribute and, together with his nobility, converted to Islam. Although popular uprisings in 1087 ended Moroccan rule, Ghana fell apart. Its successor was the new state of Mali.
State of Mali.
Although Mali was formed as a state in the VIII-IX centuries, its further development was hindered by the power of Ghana.
In the XI century. the population of Mali converted to Islam, which contributed to the influx of Muslim merchants into the country.
As a result of the development of crafts and trade by the XIII century. Mali reaches the peak of its power.
The ruler of Mali, Sundiata Keith (1230-1255), created a large army. He conquered neighboring territories, where caravan routes passed and gold was mined, incl. and the ancient lands of Ghana. The Malian rulers appointed their relatives and associates as governors of the conquered territories. The governors endowed distinguished military leaders with land. Their duties also included the collection of taxes from the population. Mali soon became famous throughout the Arab world. Its ruler Musa I in 1324 made a hajj to Mecca. According to legend, he carried a lot of gold with him and generously distributed it during the journey. He was accompanied by 8 thousand soldiers and 500 slaves who carried 10-12 tons of gold. For many years after that, the price of gold remained low in the Arab world.
The capital Niara and other cities of Mali were built up with rich buildings and mosques. Crafts and trade flourished. The clan nobility played an important role. In order to protect themselves from the claims to power of close relatives, the rulers elevated warriors and officials from among strangers, first of all, foreigners - slaves. The ruler's guard also consisted of slaves.
The bulk of the population lived in large communities consisting of patriarchal families. Foreign slaves lived on the farm as family members. Already in the second generation they became free.
From the end of the XIV century. due to strife between dynasties, political fragmentation intensified, and the state fell into decay.
State of Songhai.
The Songhai tribe lived northeast of the Ganges and Mali, near the commercial center of Gao.
In the XI-XII centuries. Songhai state association was under the rule of Mali. With its weakening at the end of the XIV century. the Songhairs, who by that time had converted to Islam, led by their ruler Ali, defeated the Malians and created a large state with its capital in Gao. At the time of its heyday, Songhai occupied the entire territory of the Niger River Basin.
The country was divided into provinces, which were ruled by those close to the ruler. The main income to the treasury came from transit trade and gold mining. Higher officials were generously distributed lands on which the labor of slaves - foreigners was used. After a certain time, they turned into dependent peasants, and their descendants became owners of small land plots, which paid taxes to the state. A special mercenary army was created in Songai.
Remember!
The Songhai state pursued an independent policy from the end of the 16th century, its capital was the city of Gao. At the end of the XVI century. Songhai is conquered by the Sultan of Morocco.State of Aksum.
In the north of present-day Ethiopia, in ancient times, there was the state of Aksum, which flourished in the 4th-5th centuries.
The coast of South Arabia along with caravan routes and part of Eastern Sudan fell under the rule of its rulers. Aksum maintained close ties with the Roman Empire, and later with Byzantium. The ruler and his associates adopted the Christian faith.
In the 7th century the Arabs conquered the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula, which was owned by Aksum, and began to move into the continental part of the country. Aksum, suffered defeat after defeat and in the X century. it was destroyed, and power passed to a dynasty that did not profess Christianity. According to legend, the first ruler of Aksum is the son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba - the ruler of the Arabian Saba, with whom the Aksumites were closely associated in antiquity - Manelik. This indicates that Aksum's relationship with Arabia has been good since ancient times, and the name of the dynasty has a historical basis.
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