LESSON 28
MALI & SONGHAYSouth of Ghāna lay the land of the Malinke. Arab geographers at first referred to them as Lamlam, and regarded them as a primitive and savage people. Without elaborate political organization, they were easy prey to slave raiders from Takrūr, Silā and Ghāna. Nevertheless, Dyula or Wangara Malinke controlled the Bambuk gold production, and Muslims eager to buy gold and slaves settled in their midst. As a result, some Malinke became Muslim.
The Malinke found their fortune when the Bambuk gold fields began to run out and they developed the Bure gold fields on the Niger, deep within Malinke territory. The Malian king Sundiata (1230-55) led a war of independence against the Susu king of Ghāna, Sumanguru, and established the Mali empire. The kings of Mali, even before Sundiata, were Muslim, but not very seriously so. At the critical moment when Sundiata was to face Sumanguru he did not turn to Islamic ways of getting divine help but made use of the traditional methods. Stealing some of Sumanguru's wine, he prepared a poison which could be used with a white cock's nail, since Sumanguru had been treated for immunity against iron.
Under Mansa Mūsā (1312-37) Mali reached the peak of its greatness, swallowing up Takrūr on the Atlantic, the former Ghāna empire and the lands of Gao as far as present-day Niamey. To give unity to such a huge and heterogeneous empire, Mansa Mūsā promoted the supra-tribal identity of Islam rather than Malinke nationalism. The trade routes he controlled brought him great wealth, and on his pilgrimage of 1324 he upset the economy of Egypt with all the gold he brought and liberally expended. This visit put Mali on subsequent maps of the world.
During the reign of Mansa Sulaymān (1341-60) the historian Ibn-Batūtta visited and described Mali. He was impressed by the security of the country, the study of the Qur'ān, and the observance of the Friday prayers and the two great Islamic festivals, but was shocked at the persistence of pre-Islamic customs such as eating forbidden meat, using religious festivals to celebrate the king, the presence of naked young women before the king, and the homage visitors had to pay the him by sprinkling dust and ashes on their heads, whereas in Ghāna the pagan king did not require it of Muslims.
When Mansa Sulaymān died, civil war broke out. The break-away provinces were eventually absorbed by the Songhay empire, while the Mali homeland was safe because it was surrounded by forests and rivers. Cut off from the wider Muslim world, the Mali kings drifted from Islam. Only the Dyula or Wangara traders kept Islam alive in the region.
Gao (Kawkaw to the Arabs), was a kingdom of Jerma or Songhay people that began on the Niger river around the 7th century as a trans-Saharan terminus. The king lived on the west side of the river and the merchants on the east. In the 13th century two Gao princes, `Alī Kolon and Salman Nari, who were hostages with the king of Mali, escaped and reestablished the independence of Gao. Their successors bore the title "Sonni" instead of the former "Zā". Mansa Mūsā subjected Gao to Mali once more when he passed that way on pilgrimage in 1324. At the end of the 14th century Songhay became independent and began to expand west along the Niger.
Sonni `Alī (1464-92) continued the conquests, taking Timbuktu from the Tuareg in 1468 and Jenne in 1473, and in 1483 defeating the Mossi who had constantly been raiding Songhay's new territories. Sonni `Alī mistreated the Muslim learned class in Timbuktu because he thought they were favouring the Tuareg who often raided Songhay territory from the desert.
When Sonni `Alī died, the general Muammad ibn-abī-Bakr at-Tūrī (1492-1529) took over. The kings of the new dynasty, who were given the title "Askiya", relied on Islam as a support for their regime more than did their predecessors. Askiya Muhammad went on pilgrimage in 1496, retracing the route and style of Mansa Mūsā by going with a large entourage and plenty of money to spend. In Cairo he allegedly got the `Abbāsid caliph to appoint him his deputy as ruler of Songhay. Askiya Muhammad patronized the Muslim learned class in his domains; these took over the influential and privileged social position traditional priests had enjoyed under the previous regime.
Askiya Muhammad expanded Songhay west to the Atlantic and north to the salt mines of Taghāma. He fought the Malinke and the Mossi, but was unable to subjugate them. To the east Songhay power reached Agadez, Katsina, Gobir, Zamfara, Zaria and Kano. But the Songhay general, Kanta, who built the Kebbi capital of Surame (near Sokoto), revolted in 1516 and created an independent state for himself. Songhay never subjected the Tuareg, and could not hold the Tuareg town of Walata. Nevertheless the Tuareg rallied to Songhay because of the economic benefits of the empire.
An important economic base for the Songhay empire were the newly opened Akan gold fields. These were exploited by the Dyula, in modern Ghāna, who from 1471 traded also with the Portuguese at Elmina. They founded the state of Gonja towards the end of the 16th century, by which time the Portuguese had been pushed out of Elmina (and most of Morocco) and the gold trade was redirected to North Africa, leaving only the slave trade on the Atlantic. Gold and slaves were Gonja's major exports, while horses were imported for military superiority and getting a supply of slaves. Other imports were luxury goods for the enjoyment of the upper classes. Essentially the Songhay empire was an exploitative trading oligarchy where the common man did not benefit and even suffered.
In his later years Askiya Muhammad became blind and incompetent. His son Mūsā deposed him on the occasion of the `Īd al-adhā in 1529, and the old man lived in retirement until his natural death in 1538. Askiya Mūsā was assassinated in 1531 and his place taken by one Muammad Benkan, who ruled until 1537 when he was deposed by Ismā`īl, another son of Askiya Muammad. Askiya Ismā`īl restored the legitimacy of the dynasty. Askiya Ishāq (1539-49) raided the very capital of Mali, and his successor Askiya Dāwūd (1549-82) further strengthened Songhay power.
QUESTIONS
- Explain the economic reasons why Mali could take over Ghāna, Takrūr etc.
- Explain the function of Islam in unifying the Mali and Songhay empires.
- Explain the extent of Islam and traditional religion in Mali and Songhay.
- Evaluate the accomplishments of the Mali and Songhay empires.
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