The genius of the people of Africa can also be traced far across the globe. According to historian Hendrick Clarke, the Malian, Mansa Abubakar, sailed to the Americas many years before Christopher Columbus. The black Moors according to scholar Kaba Kamene, civilized Europe and established some of its advanced cities.
With all that said, what was happening on the continent? Did the inhabitants build anything substantial? The answer is, yes! Even more! What Africans built and lost in North Africa, they established the same in sub-Saharan Africa.
We all know of the famous African empires like Ancient Egypt which has stood the test of time to prove the genius of blacks, the Zulu empire which defeated a powerful British army at Isandlwana, Ethiopia and its association with the Solomonic dynasty, etc.
Historical powerful kingdoms in Subsaharan Africa
#1. The mysterious land of Punt
The land of Punt was regarded as the ancestral home by the Egyptians themeselves. The land has been highly praised in ancient Egyptian records, it was viewed as a place rich in ebony, gold, myrrh and exotic animals such as apes and leopards.
During the reign of Queen Hatshepsut, the Egyptians sent many caravans to this land. However, the exact palace has not been established. Most researchers believe that Punt should have been located somewhere in East Africa.
In 2010 a team of experts analyzed the mummy of a monkey that had been gifted to the Egyptians by the Punt people. The experts found that the remains were closely related to animals in East Africa most especially in areas of Eritrea and Ethiopia.
#2. The kingdom of Kush
Kush of the Nubians is a kingdom that is outstanding just like the Egyptian one. It was an ancient empire established along the Nile River in places that are today Sudan and Southern Egypt. Most scholars associate this kingdom with the Biblical Cush. Some go further to quote Isaiah 37:9 when King Tirhakah or Taharaqa is mentioned when he helped his counterpart in Israel, Hezekiah, against the Assyrian invasion.
During the peaks of this civilization, Kush had its own writing system, the Meroitic scripts. Its rulers colonized Egypt in the 25th dynasty founded by king Pianki in 747BC. The Kushitic rule went further crossing the red sea as seen with their friendship with Israel. There were also more Kushitic rulers in Egypt before and after this dynasty as seen in most of the arts.
The kingdom of Kush is also known for its unique pyramids, they are more in number than the ones found in Egypt. The Kushitic pyramids are also smaller and steeper compared to the Egyptian ones. The later capital, Meroe, after Kerma and Napata, served in the best days of this Kingdom.
Even though there are some similarities between the two cultures, the people were not that different from each other. The Nubians were darker while the Egyptians were mostly brown Africans. They also had spiritual similarities such as the veneration of Egyptian deities like Amun.
The Kushites pioneered trigonometry, the use of reservoirs, water wheels, and blast furnaces. They are also known for their women rulers, the Kandakes or queen mothers.
Related read >>> Kandake Amanirenas the Nubian queen that defeated caesar's army
#3. The kingdom of Benin
Benin originally known as Edo was positioned in present-day south Nigeria in West Africa. It is one of those medieval African kingdoms that have not been given due attention by the mainstream media. Benin empire was founded in the 11th century and existed until the 16th century when it was annexed by the British colonial government.
History records by some European explorers praise this kingdom for its amazing artwork and Infrastructure. The most famous is the Benin walls of which The Guinness Book of Records (1974 edition) describes
the walls of Benin City and its kingdom as "the world’s largest earthworks" built
before the mechanical era.
The Benin Walls are further said by New Scientist to be four times longer than the China walls and they consumed more materials than the great pyramids of Cheops. The walls covered a distance of 16,000 kilometres, they are further said by New Scientist's Fred Pearce as having taken approximately 150 million hours to build.
Great Benin, where the king resides, is larger than Lisbon; all the streets run straight and as far as the eye can see. The houses are large, especially that of the king, which is richly decorated and has fine columns. The city is wealthy and industrious. It is so well governed that theft is unknown and the people live in such security that they have no doors to their houses.
The empire is also said to be one of the earliest cities to use streetlights that were made of large metal lamps fueled by palm oil. They also refined bronze and made beautiful sculptures that decorated the city.
#4. The Great Zimbabwe
Another amazing African civilization is the Great Zimbabwe of today's zimbabwe. It was an empire established in 1220 CE and running through to 1450 CE. This empire was so amazing that some western scholars denied that it was built by indigenous Africans, the Shona people.
The said scholars attributed it to the Biblical Solomonic dynasty. Supporting this claim, they linked Zimbabwe to the mysterious place where King Solomon got his mineral wealth, Ophir (1st Kings 9:28).
The kingdom traded in gold and ivory which they exported to places like China and India. Apart from specializing in crop and animal farming, the people were famed miners of iron and copper.
What did the empire look like? The Great Zimbabwe was made up of the Hill Complex, the Great
Enclosure, and the Valley Ruins all skillfully built. They were made of mortarless stone
constructions and mud-brick structures (dagas). Most of the stone buildings were made of granite.
#5. The Kingdom of Kongo
The Democratic Republic of Congo and The Central Republic of Congo would have made up this great empire, it would later spread to Gabon and Angola. The Kingdom of Kongo was founded in 1319 CE and fell in 1914 CE.
The most significant of this Kingdom are its technological advancement, administrative system, education system, agricultural practices, fashion clothes and artwork. The Kingdom also melted copper and gold and was a famous trader of raffia clothes and pottery.
Rebecca Bayeck, P.hD, writes in the New York Public library that Kingship in the kingdom was not hereditary, any citizen could be elected as the ruler. She further adds that the Kingdom did not have an active army, and states were not acquired through military conquest.
At its height, the Kongo kingdom occupied a pivotal position - geographically, geopolitically, and culturally - in the continent’s early interactions with Western colonial powers, creating a legacy that can still be felt today in the Diaspora communities of the American Southeast.
Susan Cooksey, curator of African Art at Harn Museum as quoted by the University of Florida News.
#6. The Songhay Empire
Songhay was founded in 1000 CE and existed until 1590 CE. Lauded as the largest empire on the continent, it covered areas that are now Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and The Gambia. Songhay empire is said to attain tremendous growth during the reign of its African founding king, Sunni Ali.
The people of the empire are praised by Chancellor Williams as "highly intelligent, industrious and aggressively invincible both as traders and warriors". He further writes that the Songhay was larger than the continent of Europe.
As a learning centre, Timbuktu in Songhay produced some of the best African writers whom Chancellor Williams resistantly says they wrote in Arabic languages. The centre also admitted students from Asia and Spain. Some African skilled workers were graduates of the Timbuktu learning centre.
#7. The Kingdom of Ghana
Did you know that Ghana as a country was named after this ancient kingdom?
The kingdom formerly known as Wagadou served as a trade route for the trans-Saharan trade connecting traders to the markets on the Mediterranean coast. Founded by the Soninke people, it stood from 300 c. until 1100 c., the Kingdom is said to have different capital cities but the most outstanding is Koumbi Saleh.
The Kingdom of Ghana today would compose of parts that are Mauritania, Mali and Senegal. The people of Ghana traded in gold and the Kola nuts that are today used in the manufacture of Coca-Cola.
As you have now discovered that Africa south of the Sahara also had sophisticated empires, it is also sad to note that most were destroyed by brutal colonial regimes. It is said that in order to prove the negative ideology of racism, everything that did not make us primitive was destroyed.
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