The Songhai Empire
By Jake Speller
The Songhai Empire was a civilization that was a large power in West Africa. They were
a state of the Ghana's from 800-1230 CE and a state of the Mali's from 1230-1461 CE. In 1461,
Songhai, led by Sunni Ali defeated the Malians and became the last empire of West Africa.
When Ali defeated Mali,
they took over Timbuktu, Jenne,
and their eventual capital, Gao.
Over time, they conquered North
Africa areas, such as Egypt, the
Sahara
and
Morocco,
West
Africa areas such as Senegambia
and Ghana, and the Niger River
Bend area which included Mossi
and Fulani states. They were able
to make diplomatic relationships
with Morocco, Egypt, and the Arab World. Thanks to Ali and Muhammad
Ture, they were able to conquer most of West Africa.
After Ali expanded the empire, Ture had trouble handling the entire
civilization, so he used a centralized government. He
separated Songhai into 10 provinces. He put his
family as administrators of each province. He also
had a handy right-hand man who was very loyal to
him. But as time went on, the government began to
crumble.
Their military, however, was very strong. They had a strong army, which
included cavalry and infantry, but they’re navy was the focal point of the military. They won
most of their battles using a mixture of army and navy. Ture was a general, and during his later
years of his reign, he took over areas by force.
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Trade and religion was a big part of everyday life. Sunni Ali was a Sonkine, the
original religion, but did allow Islamic culture. Ture, on the other hand, was a Muslim and only
allowed Islamic culture. Trade was a major part of Songhai. It was centered in the capital of Gao,
which was mart of Mali. Some items traded were salt, gold, slaves, weapons, and books.
The decline of the Songhai started after Askia Dawud stepped down. Weak rulers
followed and they put the empire in chaos. Portugal made it worse and took most of the gold
resources. During the chaos, Morocco found the opportunity and
seized control of the Songhai. However, because the government of
the Songhai crumbled, Morocco could not control the empire.
The Songhai empire was a very well oiled machine.
However, those small bumps turned into large bumps during the
end of the run. They had some bad rulers earlier, but they were
taken out of the throne by tyrants. Near the end, no one took the emperor out of control, and they
lost the empire to Morocco.
Works Cited
Appiah, Kwame Anthony, et al. “Muhammad Ture.” ABC-CLIO eBook Collection. ABC-CLIO,
26 Sept. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2011. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/
601416?terms=Muhammad+Ture>. It was on the best leader of the empire.
- - -. “Sunni Ali.” ABC-CLIO eBook Collection. ABC-CLIO, 26 Sept. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2011.
<http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/
601419?terms=Songhai%20Empire&webSiteCode=SLN_HANC&returnToPage=%2fSe
arch%2fDisplay%2f601419%3fterms%3dSonghai+Empire&token=849E9A371E89237E
67B773F89EB487BA&casError=False>. I thought it was a good source because it is on
one of the major leaders.
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Davidson, Basil, Nehemia Levtzion, and Elias Saad. “Askia Dynasty.” ABC-CLIO eBook
Collection. ABC-CLIO, 26 Sept. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2011. <http://ancienthistory.abcclio.com/Search/Display/601263?terms=songhai+empire>. It was on their largest dynasty
during the empire.
Gold. N.d. JPEG file. used for trade
Muhammad Ture. N.d. JPEG file. had major leader
Songhai Empire Map. N.d. JPEG file. Map of empire
Sunni Ali. N.d. JPEG file. is sunni ali
Williams, Brian. “Songhai Empire.” ABC-CLIO eBook Collection. ABC-CLIO, 26 Sept. 2011.
Web. 26 Sept. 2011. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/
601432?terms=songhai+empire>. It was the main article on the empire.
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