If you take a walk around Scotland observing its numerous monuments that include remains of forts, towers and roads, you will find that most –if not all- the surviving monuments are military in nature. This is because at some time, Scotland’s location was on the northwest frontier of the enormous Roman Empire. One of the […]
Africans on the Antonine Wall (2nd century AD) Read More »
Juan Valiente, was born in Northwest Africa, became a slave, was sold to Hernan Cortes’ cousin, was talented, became a Captain and Encomienda holder.
Juan Valiente: From Slave to Spanish Conquistador, Captain and Encomienda-holder Read More »
There is a painting from the 16th century that depicts Juan Garrido holding a pike and standing next to the Spanish conquistador, Hernan Cortes. Many have mistaken Garrido in this painting as a slave along with other paintings from the same era. This is because in Portugal at this time, a time were almost all
Juan Garrido: African Spaniard & Conquistador of the New World Read More »
The Spanish Morocco African Army, also known as the Army of Africa was one of the distinct forces of the Spanish Army. It primarily consisted of two units – The Spanish Legion and the Regulares. It is called the Spanish Morocco African Army because it was a field-armed force of the Spanish Army that garrisoned
Spanish Morocco African Troops (Fuerzas Regulares Indígenas) Read More »
When his nephew Emperor of the Ming dynasty Zhu Yunwen started eliminating rivals and demoting his uncles, Zhu Di, was “forced”, provided wonderful pretext, to rebel and depose his nephew and become the emperor himself. To add legitimacy to his rule, he did something very unusual and had one his best fleet admirals sail to the East Coast of Africa to get Giraffes. These were labelled the first re-appearance of one of the 4 benevolent animals in Chinese mythology, the Qilin. Where did they go to? What was the role of the Sultanate of Mogadishu, present-day Somalia, in the medieval world?
The evidence of civilisation around the Great Lakes of East Africa dates back 5,500 years, but if we want to name names, monarchs tend to keep better records because their right to rule depends on it. So, we know that the kingdom of Bunyoro-Kitara existed from the 11th century to today, surviving an attempt by
1,000 year kings’ list of Bunyoro-Kitara, Uganda (including the first ruler, a woman) Read More »
The Carrier Corps were a logistical support labour force created in, and recruited from, the British East Africa Protectorate, now Kenya and Uganda, during the First World War. It was a section of the British armed forced which helped the British in the fight against the German Military powers in East Africa, led by Paul
WW1: Spotlight on British East Africa Carrier Corps Read More »
Although, the civilisation of Rwanda dates back to 2020 BC, the earliest date for the start of centralisation under one monarch is between the 10th and 11th century. Rwanda was a landlocked kingdom situated in east-central Africa, on the south of the equator, with Nyanza as its capital. The development of the society may be
The Rwandan Civilization (2000 BC – 1960 AD): Iron and Soundwave Technology Read More »
The chances are you have probably never heard of the ancient walls of Benin. The location of the old Benin city is still the present-day location of Benin city in Edo state, south-west Nigeria.When the Europeans first arrived at the Benin kingdom in the late 15th Century, they were astonished by the wealth, quality of
The Ancient Walls of Benin: 16,000 Kilometres (800AD-14th Century) Read More »
ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION The Great precolonial Benin kingdom is one of the oldest West African civilisations in continuous existence that commands respect; having existed from 355 BC to Present. Well known for its brilliant bronze, ivory, iron artefacts and military prowess. This kingdom although annexed is still present-day Benin city in southwestern Nigeria. It is
The Kingdom of Benin: 1,660 Years from 355 AD to Present Read More »
The Kingdom of Dahomey or the Fon kingdom of Dahomey was a small kingdom in western Africa (now in the southern region of Benin). It was developed on the Abomey Plateau amongst the Fon people in the early 17th century and became a regional power in the 18th century by conquering key cities on the Atlantic coast. It
Kingdom of Dahomey: Could an all female army defeat men? Read More »
The ancient indigenous people of North Africa, West of Egypt were of many tribes, and they were commonly referred to as the Berbers. Their lands were invaded several times, yet they managed to maintain their languages and their culture along with considerable military power. Among the invaders and conquerors of North Africa were the Phoenicians,
Dihya, Queen of the Berbers: the Wars against the Rashidun caliphate Read More »
The role of African people is often overlooked in both the World Wars. At the time of the World Wars, Africa was split between the British, the Germans and the French, with all three countries colonizing large parts of the population. Naturally, Africa was dragged into both World Wars, though its role in helping win
“I’m always ready for a war again
Go down that road again
It’s all the same” The Weeknd. Seems like hardly the lyrics for a Queen Mother. But when the Asante People were humiliated and their Golden Stool demeaned by a British civil servant, guess what happened?
Yaa Asanteewaa: Queen Mother, Grandmother, Sixty, Goes Toe-to-Toe with Britain Read More »
A fallacy about African history is often repeated that political institutions were introduced by either Europeans or Arabs. With one 1,000 year old kingdom still in existence, we demonstrate that African stories are available to turn into documentaries, education and entertainment material from the Kingdom of Buganda.
Kingdom of Buganda: Uganda’s 1000 year old Kingdom Read More »
“In 1914, the Germans and their allies went to war not just with Britain, but with the whole of the British Empire. Over 3 million soldiers and labourers from across the Empire and Commonwealth served alongside the British Army in the First World War. ” National Army Museum. How did the Force Publique help the Allies?
Some civilisations sacrificed a work-life balance, art and architectural brilliance to focus on winning wars. One African dynasty found time to fight the Mongol empire and build insane works of beautiful architecture at the same time. “Mamluk” comes from the Arabic “owned” or slave. The Mamluk sultanate was created by slave soldiers and administrators that took over Egypt from the Ayyubid dynasty.
Should Afro-Europeans wear the poppy? This question used to challenge me. Learning GCSE History (a UK secondary school grade), I heard about what sparked World War 1 and the lessons the government wanted the next generation to learn. “Those who don’t know their history are doomed to repeat it” George Santayana (16 December 1863 in Madrid, Spain – 26 September 1952 in Rome, Italy). And there! my interest in the past was sparked. I read. Interested in movies, along the way, I watched various films like Sergeant York, Dam Busters, Where Eagles Dare and sat through Lawrence of Arabia twice. In all this I grew to respect the past generation of Brits for their grit and sacrifice but I was never made to feel that “people who look like me” contributed anything to Britain’s survival or prosperity. Now, I know otherwise. Now, I know that it was a World War in the first place because Africa didn’t have self-rule on both sides of the war.
All through the First and Second World Wars, multitudes of African fighters battled with regards to European interests, while being consigned to frontier status and gaining almost no ground toward picking up freedom of their own. The Senegalese Tirailleurs are among the numerous indigenous people groups who served in the French armed forces amid the World Wars. By 1918, France had enrolled somewhere in the range of 192,000 Tirailleurs Sénégalais all through French West Africa and 134,000 of them got involved in combat roles – some in the European theatre.
Over the span of thirty years, an empire emerged and grew supporting the rising religion at the time, Islam. This period witnessed a spectacular expansion of territory and religion during the Rashidun Caliphate which translates to “The Rightly-Guided Successors” under the leadership of four caliphs covering an area of 6,400,000 km2 and including a population of 21,400,000.
The Rashidun Caliphate: international spread of Islam Read More »
The Kingdom of Kerma was an ancient civilization that existed between 2500 BC and 1500 BC, with its capital at the city of Kerma. It was located in the heart of Sudanese Nubia and is the first provable sub Saharan kingdom to have existed. The Kingdom of Kerma is thought to have existed without a
The Kingdom of Kerma (2500-1500 BC) Read More »
The King’s African Rifles, abbreviated as KAR, was a Colonial Regiment of Britain which served from 1902 to 1960s. It was a multi-battalion regiment which worked in East Africa for a more extended period. Britain had without any doubt many possessions in East Africa, and till the independence of British East African colonies, the King’s African Rifles worked up to the mark.
The first and last shots of world war 1 were fired in Africa, not Europe. How come? And why do modern Great War ceremonies and films give the impression that only Americans and Europeans died for “freedom”? Africans contributed money, skill (in producing goods to aid the war effort) and the human sacrifices needed to call it a world war. The era of German colonialism that lasted till 1918 had left Africans who fought for Germany either dead, injured for life, without ex-service pensions and with financial losses.
The Fatimid caliphate was an Islamic kingdom that stretched over North Africa from 909 AD to 1171 AD. The caliphate promulgated the Seveners (or Ismāʿīlism) branch of Shia Islam and its geography spread from the Red Sea (to the East) to the Atlantic Ocean (to the West). It covered a total area of 4,100,000 square
The Fatimid Caliphate: Contributions to Arts and Sciences Read More »
The Kingdom of Medri Bahri was a semi unified state situated in the Horn of Africa (modern day Eritrea). It was established in the early 12th century and rose to prominence in the 13th century, through trade and its impressive defensive army. It survived multiple serious invasion attempts by formidable enemies, including the powerful Ottomans,
Kingdom of Medri Bahri: 400 years of David v. Goliaths victories against Ottomans Read More »
The Rhodesian African Rifles was the oldest regiment of the Rhodesian Army. It was established in the year 1940 by the British colony of Southern Rhodesian, to fight in the World War II. Most of the ranks in Rhodesian African Rifles comprised of Southern African troops only, although the officers were broadly from the white
WW2: Spotlight on Rhodesian African Rifles Read More »
The Abbasid Caliphate came after the Umayyad caliphate, in 750 CE, lasted 5 centuries and was one of the largest Empires in the world at its peak.
The Abbasid Caliphate: The Golden Age of the Islamic Civilization Read More »
Makuria was successor state to the Nubian kingdom. The kingdom of Makuria comprised of a region along the Nile River; encompassing the area between today’s Aswan in southern Egypt and Khartoum in central Sudan. The kingdom existed between 500 AD to the middle of the 14th century and had its capital as Dongola which was
Makuria: Humanity’s Longest Observed Peace Treaty, The Baqt Read More »
If a person wanted to hold (or retain) a political role and wanted the masses to hold a particular point of view, how would they go about spreading their message and proving that they are qualified for such a role? Surely, they would want to appear at their best, bringing out all their finest qualities
The Birth of Propaganda: King Den’s Sandal Label Read More »
Peter Adeniyi Thomas, WW2 Flight Lieutenant, b. Lagos Nigeria 1915, died age 30. Volunteered in gratitude for Great-grandfather rescued by the Royal Navy.
World War 2 Flight Lieutenant Peter Adeniyi Thomas Read More »
