Saturday, October 7, 2017
West African society from antiquity to 7th century AD
Transformation occurs in West Africa from this period. The people of West Africa interacted and involved in various activities like political, economical and social. Therefore the societies in West Africa were not static; they kept on changing and improving in all aspects.
Characteristics
- The major means of production were owned communally
- Clan heads were responsible for the land distribution to the rest of the people
- The community members respected each other and everyone was responsible.
- The major economic activity was hunting and gathering
- The nomadic hunter –gatherer had no permanent settlement
Transformation from one mode to another took place as surplus increased. The surplus started around 300 BC.
Activities of Pre-colonial West African Societies
- Pastoralism,
In West Africa it was done by Fulani people. Other societies include the Beja, the Afar and Baggara of the Sahara .
- Manufacturing industries
Traditional industries were developed among West African societies such as balk cloth industries and cotton industries in Kano among the Fulani.
- Pottery, leather and basket making handcrafts were developed by indigenous West African people
- Science and technology, such as iron smelting.
- Agricultural activities
The greatest population in Africa had been practicing agriculture for many centuries. Traditional African agriculture was geared towards subsistence and not towards commercialization.
- Trade
Local trade and regional trade developed because there was an uneven distribution of resources. In the Trans Saharan trade gold and salt were commodities of trade.
HISTORY OF TRANS SAHARAN TRADE
The trade conducted from West Africa to North Africa across Sahara desert. The current features of the Sahara desert are different from the previous Sahara . The previous Sahara was fertile, had rock painting, vegetation, and cattle keeping was taking place in the area. It can be pre-dated as the settlement of the Cathageans under Roman Empire . It is said that trade involved the exchange of goods from West Africa to North Africa through Sahara .
The goods included slaves, gold (from Bambuk and Bure), ostrich feathers, ivory, kola nuts were transported to North Africa from West Africa, while in return West Africa received not only salt, but also commodities such as cowrie shells, cloths, figs and dates, horses, guns, beads, and ornaments.
Participants in that trade were the Berbers from North Africa and the Dyula from West Africa .
Trade routes
- Western route From
- The Central route Started at
- The Eastern route It started from
Caravan left the Barbary states of West Africa between September and October, and departed from the Sudan at the beginning of the rainy season in April or May each year. The size of caravan varied from one consisting only five to one of 200 camels.
Factors for the development of Trans- Saharan trade
- Both communities of west and north Africa were stable politically which enabled the traders to move from one place to another
- The Western states provided goods which the people of North Africa and the Mediterranean needed e.g gold, ivory, slaves.
- Existence of goods in large quantities in West Africa such as kola nuts, fish etc.
- The Berber of North Africa and the people of West Africa trusted one another.
- The use of camel as a means of transport encouraged the development of Trans Sahara trade. Camels were able to carry more commodities than horses or human beings porters.
- Good leadership of the kingdoms of West Africa like Sundiata, Mansa Musa. They arranged fair taxes and tariffs hence traders managed to conduct trade.
- Security; the strong empires in West Africa ensured harmony, peace and security which are prerequisites for trading activities.
- Availability of water in the desert. Traders were able to get some water in the oasis.
The collapse of Trans Saharan Trade
- Change of routes; commodities were no longer exported across Sudan instead they were taken through the Atlantic Ocean
- As time went on West Sudan lost the monopoly of goods such as salt and gold. People from Europe got them from other parts of the world.
- The Sahara desert gradually became dry. Due to scarcity of water, traders found it difficulty to cross the Sahara desert.
- The trade was disrupted by wars between the Christian and Moslems in Morocco . The area became insecure (crusade wars). The Turkish imposed their rule in Morocco .
The impacts of Trans Saharan Trade
There is no doubt that T.S.T had far reaching political, social and economic effects in West Africa . Adu Boahen et al (1986) outline the following impacts of this trade.
· The trade contributed to the formation of states and kingdoms in West Africa .
· It created a desire of the local rulers to establish control over the trade routes and over the areas that produced gold, salt, and kola.
· The T.S.T provided a means for expansion through the provision of effective means of warfare such as horses, guns and metals suitable for the manufacturing of spears, arrowheads, or axes.
· It increased the power of the rulers, by ensuring regular sources of income through tariffs and tributes on import and exports. The rulers were able to pay the soldiers who protected and expanded the empires.
· Great improvement in political administration of the kingdoms. Well educated Muslim traders were incorporated in kingdoms as advisers, civil servants and ministers.
· Economically the trade greatly promoted the exploitation of natural resources. Through T.S.T, West Sudan became known throughout Europe and the Muslim world as gold producing area.
· Socially, the T,S,T promoted urbanization, that is the development of small villages, towns and cities e.g Taghaza, Takedda, Awdaghost, Kumbi Saleh, Jenne, Timbuctu, Gao, Kano Katsina, Gobir and Zamfara.
· The development of T.S.T was assisted by Islam but the caravan trade itself greatly accelerated the spread of this religion in West Africa . Clerics or holly men, and teachers were also traders.
In all of these ways, it can be concluded that the Trans Saharan trade did have a very important impact on West Africa .
Questions
· Examine the contribution of Trans-Saharan trade the state formation and civilization of West Africa .
· Discuss the impacts of Trans-Saharan trade to the people of West Africa .
· Give a historical synthesis of the Trans-Saharan trade and highlight the factors for its rise and development.
PRE-COLONIAL WEST AFRICAN STATES
According to great scholars like Plato: A state is an ethical religious institution which care for material needs.
Aristotle pointed out that; man is apolitical animal (Homo political). A society / state is built gradually i.e it starts from the family up to the national level.
The Medieval conception of a state was influenced by Aristotelian ideology. Many scholars concurred with the idea that a state is an ethical religious institution because it takes care of spiritual people.
Modern scholars pointed out that a state is a contract between the rulers and the ruled which means is a product of socialization.
Benedict Spinoza, states that a state arose from the contract entered to by people who lived in irrational nature (perpetual wars)
Thomas Hobbes asserts that man lived in natural egoism with a drive to procure maximum leisure because man by nature has the right to every thing. But in the society there is no security for everyone hence they had to form a state.
Origin of a State
The state arises because of the needs of the people. Man by nature is not satisfied by the simple division of labour. As soon as man acquires basic needs he needs other luxurious.
Plato pointed out that rich people are not supposed to rule. To him those knowledgeable should rule the society. He also poses an argument that a ruler should not get married (to devote time to think, plan, and implement the society’s needs)
Every political system must have material base i.e economic base and production. Production according to Karl Marx is divided into material production and reproduction
According to Marxist conception, a state emerges where there is economic classes, and where there is economic exploitation. The function of the state is to regulate struggles between conflicting classes.
Theories of State Formation
- Voluntaristic – Spontaneous, Hydraulic, Automatic (Jean Jacques Rousseau’s social contrast)
- Coercive theory – Wars and conquest theories
- Circumscription theory – Harsh circumstance or environment force people into favourable geographical conditions/ state formation. (E.g the Mfecane wars compelled Moshesh to form the Basuto kingdom at Thaba Bonsiu mountain)
Eurocentric scholars have kept on arguing that state craft was brought from outside Africa .
SOME OF STATES FORMED IN WEST AFRICA
Development of Ghana
Ghana Empire developed in the areas of Western Sudan . This region is where empires such as Mali and Songhai were located. It was also known as the “land of gold”.
Factors for the Development of Ghana Empire
- Geographical location, the kingdom of Ghana
- Specialization in economic activities such as agriculture, trade and mining.
- Availability of minerals such gold, salt and copper. Gold was very important for trade. The kingdom of Ghana
- Development of iron technology and productive forces. Iron improved agriculture and weapon making.
- The rise of Trans Sahara Trade. Through Trans Sahara Trade, Kings were able to get guns for expansion.
- Tributes and taxes were used to pay officials and soldiers.
- Good administration, it is said that the king possessed divine power and the kingdom was divided into provinces like central government and provinces. The king was at the top and was assisted by the ministers.
The Decline of Ghana
- Internal contradictions within the empire. Ghana was heterogeneous state as opposed to homogeneous.
- The introduction of Islam which divided Ghana Empire into Muslim and non-mulim.
- The conquest of Ghana Empire by Almoravids. The Almoravids were led by Abdallah Ibn Yasin.
- Ghana also was attacked by the Susu leader and defeated.
The Asante Empire
- Obiri Yeboa formed the state around 1670 as a chief of the Oyoko clan. He became
chief of the small state of KWAAMAN.
- Through conquest and diplomacy he persuaded the chiefs of the small states to accept him as a king. However, Yeboa was soon killed at a war with a small state of Roma.
Factors for the rise
(i) The rise and existence of many small states in the area around modern Kumasi .
e.g Mampon, Afigyaase, and Seniagya. Others included Abooso, Baman, Malcom and
Agona. The last group of states to emerge in the area were Dwaben, Kokofu,Nsuta,Bekwai,
and Kumasi . These states were brought under a strong leader and formed the Asante
Empire.
(ii) Oppressive rule by Denkyira.
Pre-Asante states were subjected to tyrannical rule of Denkyira. Denkyira enslaved the
people of these states and stopped them to engage into trade with European merchants at
the coast. Many of these states were prepared for revolts against Denkyira.
(iii) Trade
Asante Empire developed trade links with people in the interior and European traders at the
Coast .They traded in gold, ivory, kola nuts, and slaves.
The rise of Atlantic trade contributed greatly to the emergence of Asante in particular
because it gained access to guns and ammunition which were essential for expansion.
(iv) Strong army
The Asante had a royal army for keeping peace and conquest.
- Obiri Yeboa organized military campaigns for the expansion of his kingdom.
- When Yeboa died (1670s) Osei Tutu continued conquering the Akan states placing his capital at Kumasi .
(v) Good leadership
The growth of Asante Empire was a result of the work of the first three rulers, Obiri Yeboa,
Osei Tutu and Opuku Ware.
- The Empire had a council headed by the Asantehene who evaluated the Empire’s activities.
(vi) Strong unity
The Asante unity was forged and represented by the “Golden Stool” which was introduced
by the priest Okonfa Anokye. The Golden Stool was a symbol of unity in the kingdom.
- The Asantehene introduced the Odwira festival once a year on which chiefs of the conquered states (Amanhene) gathered at the capital to settle disputes.
The Decline
From around 1820 to 1880’s the greater Asante started to decline. The reason for the decline was due to the succession of weak rulers and the threat of the British.
The Asante empire had a weak system of central and provincial administration. It consisted of three clear divisions at the peak of its power. Kumasi was under Asantehene; Amantoo was under its own Amanhene, although united by the Golden Stool, it was independent. The provincial Asante it was made by the conquered territories. The conquered states were not properly incorporated in the Empire nor given a place in the Union Council.
On a number of occasions earlier in the century the British had attacked Asante who wanted to prevent foreign control of the coastal trade. In order to assert their authority the British invaded Asante in 1874, Kumasi was captured by the British and the Empire came to an end.
The Hausa City- States
The Hausa are believed to have migrated into what is now northern Nigeria and southwestern Nigeria during the first millennium of the Christian era. They accepted the customs and religious beliefs of the Sudanic farmers whom they found and conquered. Because of the continuous warfare, fortified villages and towns began to develop as early as the 11th and 12th centuries. It was around these fortified towns the Hausa feudal states emerged.
As population increased, villages grouped together under the protection of the largest Hausa town. The Hausa states included Kano , Katsina, Gobir, Zamfara, Kebbi, and Zazzau.
The economic base of the Hausa city states was agriculture, manufacturing and trade, though each had its own specialization.
- Agriculture was conducted by the settled communities. The
- The Hausa city states had artisans who made articles which were exported across the
- From an early stage the strength of Gobir came from its Trans- Saharan trading contacts. Katsina also was an important trading centre. Zamfara and Kebbi were other important trading centres.
Other states among the Hausa states became major suppliers of slaves e.g Zazzau raided slaves in the regions of Benue river.
The Influence of Islamic Religion
From the 14th century onwards, Islam began to take root and became the most favoured religion among the Hausa kings and nobles. Islam did not, however spread quickly to the rural areas. It remained an urban religion as the indigenous people in the countryside held their tradition religion and beliefs.
Islam had a strong influence on the urban people; mosques were built in many of the Hausa towns. Each city developed a university along lines of the school in Timbuktu where scholars instructed young men of Hausa in writing, reading, ethics, philosophy, mathematics, government and religion.
Bureaucracy and Government Organization
The Hausa city states were governed independently. Each city had its own government and governor. The governors were assisted by nobles whose ancestors had been royal to the dynasty.
The Hausa states’ sources of revenue
1. Taxes and duties
- land tax paid by farmers
- professional tax paid by craftsmen
- custom duties payable on certain products entering into the territory
2. Livestock tax
Large stock herders’ also nomadic people paid grazing duty.
3. Gifts from aristocracy to the superior. A political act expressed by some leaders so as to win
Favours.
4. Spoils such cattle, slaves, as sources of revenue.
5. Duty paid on girls’ marriage. A portion of dowry was paid as a tax to the government.
6. Scholars also paid duty
Fall of the Hausa States
The fall of the Hausa States was sparked by a number of reasons
- Disunity, the Hausa States were organized independent and were not united against their rivals.
- They had equal power and so difficult for one to establish dominion over the others.
- The Hausa cities were conquered by Songhai under Askia Muhammad and the final conquest was from the emperors of Kanem Bornu .
THE RISE OF MERCANTILISM IN EUROPE
Before the 15th century, Europeans had very little knowledge about Africans and their life. The known area to Europeans was the Carthagean North Africa and some extent Western Sudan as a ‘land of gold’. The situation changed between 1400 and 1600 when Portugal pioneered the age of exploration and discovery under the patronage of Prince Henry of the Aviz Dynasty. In 1415 Prince Henry the Navigator established a school of navigation and cartography at Sagres in Portugal .
The age of exploration started with the union of Portugal and Spain to form the Iberian Empire, before that unification Prince Ferdinand of Aragon wed princess Isabella of Castile in 1469; the marriage united Christian Spain under their rule.
- The Iberian Empire established trade relations in the Middle East and Asia, before 14th century they were trading with Asia through Mediterranean to Constantinople via the Black Sea to
- However, the “Black Death”, a bubonic disease that took place in Between 1348 and 1351, killed up to three in five people as it spread rapidly through pre-industrial cities, unchecked by sanitation or modern medicine. This plague claimed the lives of tens of millions of Europeans who were potential to feudal agricultural economy. The small remaining population moved to new emerging centers where trade was booming to sell their labour for wage. Slowly feudalism started to collapse and in its place a capitalist mode in a form of Mercantilism emerged.
- The Crusade Wars of 14th and 15th centuries and the insecurity there after, the route through Constantinople in
In 1487 Bartholomew Diaz reached the southern tip of the African continent. Vasco da Gama reached India via East African coasts between 1497 – 9. Christopher Columbus working under the Spanish Monarchy reached West Indies and America in 1492.
THE ATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE
The Atlantic slave trade I also known as “Triangular trade”. It was a trade in slaves which was closing the Atlantic Ocean . It joined basically three continents Africa, America and Europe . It started with the Portuguese explorations when Gonzalves, a Portuguese commander returned to Lisbon with ten Africans and presented them to Prince Henry so as to justify that he had reached the land of the Negroes in 1441.
The Africans were converted to Christianity and it was planned that they would be taken back and evangelize their fellow Africans. But by the time of the Prince’s death in 1460 many Africans were exported; about 700 and 800 annually.
When the first Portuguese reached West Africa they were mainly interested in tropical goods such as ivory, pepper, gum and above all gold. They established trading posts at El mina in Gold Coast and Whydah in Benin .
Meanwhile in 1480, the Portuguese had discovered the uninhabited equatorial island of Principe Portugal imported slaves to work in Europe and American plantation and mining centres. Through Portuguese and Spaniards expedition, mercantilism in a form of Trans Atlantic slave trade developed. The Europeans took advantage of the discovery of the new lands through trade and exploitation.
By the time the Portuguese merchants were concentrating on African coast their neighbour the Spaniards were opening the Trans Atlantic route to the Americas and Caribbean . They opened large plantations of cotton, tea, tobacco; gold and silver mines. These sectors needed labour to start with; they used the indigenous Red Indians who were not good for the task. Most of them died of either by heavy labour or infectious diseases brought by Europeans.
Planters immediately turned to Europe whereby the solution was thought in the use of Indentured Labour. The people who were sentenced to go to jail were taken to serve in the plantations in America . This also proved a failure because after finishing their sentences the indentured opened new farms and also demanded labourers.
Naturally, the Spaniards who had used slave labour –Africans, found the solution was to turn to African slaves. The first bunch of African slaves to the new world was from Lisbon in 1501.
So far as many mines were opened and plantations being set up the demand for slaves increased. Between 1530- 1600 an average of 13,000 slaves a year were sent from Africa to the Americas . Most of the slaves were from Ghana , Cameroon , Congo and Angola .
The earlier stages of Triangular trade were dominated by Portuguese and Spaniards but later on Britain , France and Holland joined them between 1600 and 1763. the commodities were African slaves and non- human goods such as the industrial goods from Europe e.g cloths, books, looking mirror, outdated guns. These commodities were exchanged with slaves, ivory rhino horns, indigo, beeswax and came wood.
Slaves were taken to America to be used in the plantations and mines. They were sold at higher prices. From the Americas the merchants took agricultural products such as cotton, coffee, tea, tobacco sugar and minerals needed in the European industries.
Mercantilism is considered to be the core of capitalism through primitive accumulation of capital by piracy, looting, plundering and slave trade. For example, in 1572, Francis Drake obtained a privateer's commission from Queen Elizabeth I (essentially a license to plunder any of King Philip of Spain 's property.) He planned to attack Spanish ships bringing silver and gold from Peru .
The wealth accumulated from America , India and Africa was used to build up industries and improve agriculture in Europe and America .
At this point in time, trade was officially restricted to powerful monopoly companies which afford building and maintaining garrisons. The forts were considered essential in 17th century for conducting slave trade. The companies included the English company called the Company of the Royal Adventurers into Africa , the French West India Company and the Dutch East India Company among others.
Africans were enslaved by the following ways:-
· Criminal sold by chiefs as punishment
· Free Africans obtained from raiding or kidnapping
· Reselling off domestic slaves.
· Prisoners of wars due to inter tribal wars waged so as to get captives
· Through exchange with European goods. Europeans began to ask for slaves in exchange for their goods, beer, cloths, books, mirror, tobacco etc.
Effects
- Depopulation, about 24 million people were taken from
- Raiding wars was a serious cause of misery, bloodshed and destructions. Slaves were no longer treated as human beings but rather as properties. Even those who remained suffered the trauma.
- Famine due to lack of production. People feared to be captured in farms.
- Underdevelopment of African continent. Slaves v/s commodities. Only 3 pounds were paid for a fit male slave
- Slave trade tended to eliminate indigenous industrial technology because of imported goods.
- Intermarriage, between European merchants and African women.
THE 19TH CENTURY JIHADIC MOVEMENTS IN WEST AFRICA
Islam is one of the major religions of the world. It was founded by Prophet Muhammad (SAW) He preached against the old pagan beliefs of the Arabs and introduced the Koran: the book whose content was dictated to him by God. He called people to discard idols and follow Allah; the true God.
Prophet Muhammad had many convents to Islam, its literally meaning is “submission to God”. After his flight from Mecca to Medina in 622AD his followers took up swords and conquered the whole of Arabia, Syria and some parts of Africa.
The Muslim Arabs conquered Egypt in 642AD. Using Egypt as their base, they extended their Jihads westwards under the leadership of Ugbaibn Nafi, a general who had been sent to conquer North Africa. His conquest and occupation collapsed soon after his death. It was up until the time of General Hassan bin an Nu’man North Africa fell under the Muslim in 708.
In order to spread Islam, the Arabs recruited Berbers into the Arab army. It was[1] essential the Berber to soldiers in the Arab army profess the Islamic faith. Despite the presence of Islamic religion, the Muslim faith was not accepted as a whole by the Berber in general until the 11th century.
It was the Berber merchants rather than the Arabs who brought Islam across the Sahara to West Africa. The people responsible were the Sanhaja Berbers. They were determined to control the trade routes across the Sahara. Sanhaja was actually a loose confederation of three large ethinic groups of which Lamtuna and Godala were the largest and most important.
The Sanhaja Berber of the Lamtuna group set up a Jihad in which they forced the indigenous Africans of Mauritania to accept Islam. Jihads were holly wars undertaken by Muslims to non-believers.
In West Africa there were four major jihads in the 19th century. They include jihads organized by:-
- Uthman dan Fodio in Hausaland -1804
- Seku ahmadu in Massina -1818
- Al- Hadji Umar in Bmbara -1852
- Samouri Toure among the Mandinka -1870
Apart from Toure who was a Mandinka all other jihads were organized by Fulbe or Fulani pastoralists of Western Sudan. The Fulani saw jihads as an opportunity to reform Islam as it was then practiced as a way of readdressing political, economic and social grievances. Nevertheless, jihadist saw themselves as being ordained by Allah and their jihad is seen as a fulfillment of prophesies by the Prophet Muhhamed: as far as they were concerned they were executing a divine will.
Causes of Jihads in West Africa
- The revival of Islamic religion in the region
West Africa observed a rapid expansion of Islam between the 7th and 16th centuries, but due to growth of European power and Christianity around the16th century Islam was put on the defensive side. The 18th century saw a determined effort to revive Islam. It started with the Wahhabi movements in Saud Arabia. In West Africa jihads were carried out by the Fulani who embraced Islamic religion in the 14th century.
The Muslim reformers were very critical of Islam practiced in the 19th century. The people of Sudan did not abandon their traditional practices. They mixed Islam with their beliefs. The jihadists’ reformers wanted Islamic converts to be true believers and pious Muslims. Muslim scholars such as Al- Kunt (1729-1811) and Jibril Umar greatly influenced the Jihadists of the 19th century. For example Al- Kunt’s writing and preaching stimulated interests of Muslims and generated intellectual and ideological excitements. Both Fodio and Seku regarded Kunti as their spiritual guide.
- The belief on the coming Mahdi
A Mahdi is a spiritual and temporal leader who will rule before the end of the world and restore religion and peace. In the Muslim world it was believed that a Mahdi would be coming in 13th century Islamic Calendar which was from 1785-1882.
It was due to this expectation in the late 19th century the jihads developed in West Africa. People were ready to accept anybody who claimed to be a Mahdi or forerunner of the Mahdi (e.g Muhammad Ahmad of Dongola in Sudan 1843-1885) declared himself Mahdi in 1881 and captured Khartoum.
- Spreading Islamic religion.
In West Africa there were some areas which had not touched by Islam. The Mossi and the Bambara for example, continued to practice their traditional religion. In Hausa the goddesses of hunting and agriculture were still worshipped. Therefore, Jihads in Western Sudan aimed at converting the remaining infidel societies into Islamic religion.
- The jihads were against nominal Muslim rulers of Western Sudan. These movements wanted to remove from power the local rulers who practiced syncretism. The reformers criticized the decline of Islam and Islamic learning. They were against corrupt leaders, their abuse of power and worldliness. Jihad was a right option to unseat unwanted rulers.
- Jihads in West Africa were organized partly due to economic, social and political grievances of the Fulani. Fulani were pastoralists who moved from one place to another. More often the Fulani were denied grazing land by the farmers. They were required to pay taxes for grazing land which was said to be illegal. They also paid fines for damages caused by their cattle on crops. In general the Fulbe lacked political power to execute decisions on their favour in the village or towns they settled.
JIHADS OF UTHMAN DAN FODIO
The Jihads in Hausa States were the first in the 19th century. They were led by Uthman dan Fodio. According to the Kano Chronicles, Islam in Hausaland was introduced between 1349 and 1385 by the Dyula from Mandinka. Islam remained the religion of the urban trading class. The rest of the agriculturalists remained pagan until the jihads of Uthman dan Fodio in the 19th century.
Uthman was born in Maratta in Gobir in 1754. He studied under various scholars of the Qadiriyya order by Alfamuhu, and under Gibril Umar of Sadez. He studied as a shehu preacher. Because of his learning, he worked for the King as his adviser but when he criticized King Yunfa’s ways of life he was dismissed. Following his dismissal, dan Fodio became a rebel. In his preaching Fodio attacked and condemned corruption and unjust governments.
· He was against illegal taxation; grazing taxes, dowry taxes, forgiveness taxes
· He advocated education for women
· He insisted on spiritual and moral value of Islamic religion.
After the death of Bawa in 1790, the succeeding was alarmed by the growing size of Uthman’s followers. Dan Fodio was expelled by his former student Yunfa who was the king of Gobir in 1802. The Islamic reformer Fodio assembled a Fulani army to lead a Jihad against the Hausa city states.
Uthman made a flight or hijira from Degel to Gudu, in 1804 he declared a Jihad against the corrupt government of Gobir. He received help from Zamfara state which disagreed with Gobir earlier.
Although the reformers were few and possessed weaker weapons, they were able to win the war due to their superior morale and good planning. After conquering Gobir, the reformers attacked the Hausa states. By 1809 the main Hausa towns were under Uthman dan Fodio. He formed the Sokotho Caliphate.
Gradually, Nupe, a part of Oyo Empire and Bornu were added to Fulani Empire with its capital at Sokotho. Before his death in 1817, Uthman divided the empire into two and gave the western half Gwadu to his brother Abdullahi and the eastern half Sokotho to his son Mohammad Bello who reigned from 1812 to 1837.
Consequences of Jihads
- Creation of Islamic states
Jihads helped in the formation of Fulani Empire of Sokotho, Massina and Futa Djallon.
- Spread of Islamic religion
Through Jihads, Islam enjoyed massive conversion of non-Muslim societies e.g the Bambara and Hausa People.
- Intellectual revolution
Perhaps, the greatest success of the Jihads was in the field of education. Many schools and colleges were founded to educate followers the meaning of Islam as a religion.
- The new governments controlled corruption and abolished unfair taxes.
- Established peace and harmony in the Islamic states through the use of sharia laws.
- Jihads were sometimes regarded as sources of wealth through raiding. War captives were sold as slaves and captured goods confiscated as booty. Slaves who supported the reformers were set free and those who didn’t were re-enslaved. In their later stages Jihads are said to have become increasingly more political and less religious in character.
History of West Africa notes part i
HISTORY OF WEST AFRICA
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONAND REGIONAL VARIATION
History expresses mans struggle to master his environment. History is the
relationship between man and his environment.
Therefore,
history without environment would be like a dead thing. Physical environment
that influence production include:
·
Soil
·
Climate
·
Vegetation
·
Mode of production
Much of West Africa depends on the
physical environment. West Africa is located
between 5-25* due to this location there are two geographical zones; (i) Forest
zone (ii) Grassland zone.
A. FOREST ZONE AND ITS FEATURES
Before the contact with whites
the people of West Africa were predominantly agriculturalists. They cultivated
rice, wheat, and tubers. There was presence of numerous grains like millet, and
sorghum which supported the Yoruba, Ibo and Ashanti people.
Forests discouraged agricultural settlements; hence people could not stay
in the forests. Their social political organization was rooted in kingship
organization. There were some kind of trade relations between the forest people
and the savannah people.
B. GRASSLAND OF
SAVANNAH ZONE AND ITS FEATURES
The area covered
more than three quarters of West Africa in Guinea ,
Sudan and near Sahara desert. The Savannah
area was not preferred hence it was not populated.
They kept
animals in this area and some parts were highly populated compared to the
forest areas.
There were some
emergence of towns due to trade between West African societies, North Africa
and the Mediterranean world, example Ghana ,
Mali , and Songhai
empires.
These areas were
developed economically and the people found in there were pastoralist.
SOURCES OF HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE IN WEST AFRICA
The sources of
historical information include the following:
- Written sources
- Anthropological sources
- Archaeology
- Historical sites
- Oral Tradition
In case of West Africa , there are three major sources of historical
knowledge.
Archaeology
This is a study
of artifacts that have been dug from the earth. Artifacts are the remains of
the material culture made by people in the past. In addition to the artifacts,
engraving and paintings found on the caves help in the study of human
activities in the past.
The word
archaeology came from Greek origin meaning the study old things but also it
means a carefully investigation of the material remains of the past include
tombs, graves, ancient cities, settlements, tools and past weapons that were
used by the past people.
It is done by
using common sense approach, advanced laboratory techniques, e.g radio carbon
dating techniques.
Archaeology is
very useful in obtaining the information of distant past and they do this by
excavation. E.g in the Olduvai Gorge (E.A), Kumbi Saleh in ancient Ghana
Oral Tradition
Involve the
passing of information by word of mouth through talking and listening to people
especially elders who transmit the information from one generation to another.
Oral tradition
has been described as a testimony transmitted from one generation to another.
The messages were transmitted orally and preserved by memory.
Mbiti J.S (2003) asserts that
because most of the African peoples did not invent an alphabet for the art of
reading or writing, therefore they could not keep written records of their
history, instead; they passed on information from one generation to another by
word of mouth. In some societies there have been special keepers of oral
tradition, whose duty was to memorize and recite historical and other relevant
information up to when that history would be collected, written down and
published.
According to
Ogutu and Kenyanchui (2007), there are five basic forms of oral tradition which
are: Formulae (titles, slogans, and ritual), Poetry, Lists, Tales and
Commentary.
Limitation of Oral Traditions
All oral traditions
are influenced by culture of the society that produces them. Thus the type of
tradition will depend on the political organization of that particular society.
Some of the weaknesses of oral tradition include the following:-
- Lack of accuracy
Some
information could be dropped as time passes deliberately or accidentally hence distorting
the historical knowledge.
- Periodization was somehow approximation not exactly
- It cannot show transformation or changes. It was static and sometimes it was exaggerated.
- It is difficulty to recover if the narrators die.
However, one can
verify the information in oral traditions by analyzing the related contribution
from written sources. Since the history of African societies is embodied
in oral traditions, it is therefore wise for African scholars and historians to
write their own history to repudiate the reports of foreign taletellers. It had
therefore been important to study all aspects of human life-social, cultural,
political as well as economic events so as to come out with a concrete history
of Africans.
Written Sources
The common
source of history to day is the written records of the past. These sorts of
records go as far back to the periods of the Greeks and the Romans and they
became more popular with the European penetration in the 19th
century.
Category of Written Sources
(i) The Greek
and Roman written sources
Provided scarcity of information of West Africa before the Christian era, though there are private
documents and family such as the one written by PTOLEMY the Greek writer who
wrote a book, The Periplus of HAMO.
(ii) Islamic
Sources
The historical
information of West Africa got from Islamic
documents. The Arabs appear to have been better informed than their classical
predecessors. The introduction of camel across the Sahara facilitated commerce,
urban settlement and trade between North Africa and Western
Sudan . Some of Arab scholars whose written records are used in the
writing of West African history include:
- El Masudi about 912 AD visited the
- El Bakri wrote around 1062 describing the wealth and trade of Ghana Empire.
- During the reign of Mansa Musa, the famous Arab writer Ibn Batuta visited and wrote an account of what he saw.(14th century)
- Leo Africanus
(al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Wazzan al-Fasi) A Moorish born at
Tarikhs and Chronicles
A Tarikh consists of a complete
written text of oral traditions. A Chronicle consists of direct records of
traditions which previously were preserved orally. Tarikhs and Chronicles primarily
concentrate on the role of rulers. Example, Tarikh
al- Sudan, Tarikh al- Fattash (of Mali );
the Kano Chronicles, and Gonja
Chronicles (central Ghana )
Questions
-
Discuss the different sources that can help in the
process of writing the history of West Africa .
-
Examine the various forms of oral tradition and their
importance in reconstruction of West African history.
-
Discuss the major functions of oral tradition in
non-literate society.
HISTORIOGRAPHY OF WEST AFRICA
Historiography is the study of a process at which historical knowledge is
obtained and transmitted. It examines the writing of history and the way it
changes in time. It is a study and writing of history. Historiography also
deals with recording and interpretation of past events.
In this case, every historian uses information according to his/her view
but events remain the same.
Types of Historiography in West Africa
(i) Colonial Historiography
(ii) Nationalist
School
(iii) Marxist School of Historiography
Colonial Historiography
The type of history which was written by colonial anthropologists and
colonial historians, it dominated from the time of colonial conquest up to
1940s. Colonial historiography believed in racial superiority of their race.
They considered the white race to be superior and the African race inferior.
This type
of historiography was developed by conservative and racist historians. It came
about with the force of capitalism in the 19th century. Prominent scholars in this
historiography include Mungo
Park
Richard
Burton, for example wrote Mission to Ghana , King of Dahomey
C.G
Seligman published a book in 1930 Races
of Africa and claimed that civilizations of Africa
were not indigenous but it was a work of the Hamites. He regarded the Negroes
and Bushmen as people of inferior race.
Views;
- West Africa had no history before the coming of
Europeans, Jews, Arabs and Phoenician
- Africans were passive to colonial
expansion and control; History of
Colonization of the
African
Races (1899) by Harry Johnson
-
Africans were victims of nature, could not control
nature.
-
Africans had no culture; they were barbaric e.g
engaging into human sacrifices, and secret
societies.
-
Many of the African societies were prone to senseless
wars, diseases and enslavements.
Colonial
scholars wrote such a history so as to undermine Africans. Justify colonialism
and express European superiority to Africans. The reality of this is outlined
by Mungazi (1996) when he writes, “One of the great tragedies of colonialism in
Africa is that the white man never understood
the potential of the African mind because Europeans were preoccupied with
justifying the reasons for colonizing the continent.” Nevertheless, the African
mind proved capable of surviving and retaining its distinctive quality in an
oppressive and dehumanizing situation.
Nationalist Historiography
A type of
Historiography that was introduced so as to oppose colonial historiography,
scholars of this historiography supported African nationalism and glorified
pre-colonial African societies. It was popular in 1960s when many African
states were struggling for independence.
Scholars in this
historiography included Ade Ajay, David Fage, and some others who have written
extensively on West African history.
Views;
-
Nationalists argue that Africa
had its history and civilization even before the coming of Europeans.
-
They support their arguments by giving examples by
giving examples of the existence of strong kingdoms such as Ghana , Mali ,
Songhai
-
Existence of writings such as rock painting
-
Africans had developed handcraft industries- basketry,
carving, cloth industries among the Yoruba and the Fulani.
-
Colonialism was exploitative and not developmental to
Africans.
Concern;
-
This historiography gained a great support from the
newly independent African leaders who wanted to justify their ability for self
rule.
-
Nationalist historiography emerged as a response to
colonial historiography,
therefore its major concern was to show that Africans can develop
independently out of capitalist grip.
Marxist Historiography
Marxist
historiography became popular in 1970s.
Marxist
Historiography comprised of the writing of history in the ideas of Karl Marx
and Frederick Engels. In the writing of history Marx and Engels insist on four
major issues:-
-
Social relations within the society. How people
interact when they act on nature. i.e
social relation in the process of production.
-
Who owns the major means of production, and who
controls the profits/ surpluses.
-
They want to know the dynamics within the society.
Marxist historians analyze events in relation or interconnection with the
other.
-
Give emphasis on internal forces and contradictions
within the society. Class struggle between the have and the have-nots, the
capitalists and the proletariats
(Social contradictions)
-
Resources are not scarce but the capitalist are the
ones who make them scarce for their
interests.
Marxist
Historiography is based on the writing of proletarian history that develops at
a specific time in the history.
QUESTIONS
-To what extent Colonial historiography was conservative and segregative?
- Differentiate Nationalist historiography to Colonial historiography.
- Discuss the main tenets of the Marxist historiography.