Influential African empires

Ancient Egypt has always been the focus of the histories of African early civilizations, but the continent housed several other powerful empires that controlled trade routes, built sprawling cities and crafted architectural monuments that still stand today.This article covers facts on some African kingdoms that made their mark on history from ancient Sudan to medieval Zimbabwe.

The Mali empire

Map of Mali by Ducksters

The founding of the Mali Empire dates back to about 1200s, when Sundiata Keita (sometimes called the “Lion King”) who was a ruler led a revolt against a Sosso king and united his subjects into a new state. Under Keita and his successors, the empire grew and took over a large portion of West Africa and grew rich on trade. Some of the most important cities were Djenné and Timbuktu, both of which were known for their Islamic schools.

In the 16th century the Mali Empire splitted, but at its peak it was one of the jewels of the African continent and was known all over the world for its wealth and luxury.

One legendary tale about the kingdom’s riches concerns Mansa Musa, who on his way to pilgrimage to Mecca during the 14th century made a stopover in Egypt and gave out so much gold during the visit that he caused its value to reduce in Egyptian markets for several years.

The land of Punt

preparations for an Egyptian journey to Punt. (Credit: De Agostini Picture Library/Getty Images)

Historical accounts of the Punt kingdom date back to around 2500 B.C., when it appeared in an Egyptian record as a “Land of the Gods” which is rich in gold, myrrh, ebony and wonderful animals.

Most notably during the 15th century B.C. during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut, the Egyptians are known to have sent huge caravans and flotillas on trade missions to Punt but they never identified where it was located.

The exact site of this kingdom is now a topic hotly debated among scholars. Recently, a team of researchers tried to zero in on Punt by analyzing a mummified baboon that its rulers once gifted to the Egyptian pharaohs. The results showed that the remains matched closely animals found in modern day Ethiopia and Eritrea, but the precise location of the Land of Punt isstill yet to be confirmed.

The Kingdom of Aksum

The influential Kingdom of Aksum held sway over parts of what are now Eritrea and northern Ethiopia during the same period that the Roman Empire rose and fell.

Surprisingly little is known about Aksum’s origins, but by the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D. it was a trading juggernaut whose gold and ivory made it a fundamental link between ancient Europe and the Far East. The kingdom wrote the script known as Ge’ez, which is one of the first to emerge in Africa and it developed a distinctive architectural style that involved the building of massive stone obelisks.

Aksum in the fourth century, became one of the first empires in the world that adopted Christianity, which led to the political and military alliance with the Byzantines. The religious legacy of the kingdom still exists today in the form of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.