Medieval Towns and Urban Life. Known trading centers c. 800 CE and Medieval Trade Network c.1300.
Medieval Africa: trading empires
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Medieval Africa:trading empires
By Shunmel, Tolga, Sophie, David
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Kingdoms of the Rain Forest
• Ghana, Mali, and Songhai ruled the savannas, couldn’t expand to southern coast because of dense rain forests.
• Rainforest kingdoms:– Benin of the Niger delta – Kongo of the Congo River Basin
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Benin: an African Kingdom
– King Ewuare founded Benin in about 1440.
– Captured 201 towns that were forced to pay tribute.
– Major power in West Africa.
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Farmers in the Rain Forest Kingdoms
• They enjoyed advantages of farmable soil and the warm, wet climate.
• Farmers had surplus of bananas, yams, or rice.
• Surplus helped support the rulers and artisans.
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Benin and Kongo Artisans
• Benin artists were really good at carving metal, wood, and ivory.
• Kongo weavers wove fabrics from bark and plant fibers.
Ivory Salt Cellar
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Trading• Rain forest kingdoms bordering the savannas
traded their surplus food and crafts for copper, salt, and leather goods.
• Later Europeans (on ships) came to the Atlantic coast, and traded items and prisoners of war as slaves.
• Many salt deposits in western Africa. Salt trade was important for the African people. In ancient times, salt was traded like gold.
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East Africa
• Ethiopia’s history started around 1005 B.C. • Glory of Kings: Ethiopia’s oldest written
history.• Queen Makeda ruled the empire, which was
called Saba/Sheba.• Makeda met king Solomon, king of the
Israelites, and introduced their religion to East Africa.
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Axum
• Ethiopian city-state near the Red Sea• Ethiopia: known as Abyssinia in
ancient times.• Axum’s importance was because of
it’s location on the Red Sea.• Goods were coming through the Red
Sea from Africa which served as a prime trading center.
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King Ezana of Axum
• King Ezana fought with Kush to gain control of the trade routes to inland Africa.
• About A.D. 300, Ezana’s armies defeated Kush.• In A.D. 334, Ezana made Christianity the
official religion of Axum.• A few hundred years later, the Islam religion
brought many changes to the region.
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Coastal City States
• Arab traders invented triangular sail called dhows.
• In AD 700, Arab Muslim traders settled in East African states. Africans and Arab Muslims shared goods and ideas.
• By 1300’s, important trading posts extended down the East African coast such as:
Mogadishu, Kilwa, Mombasa, Zanzibar
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Kingdom of Zimbabwe
• A large empire located in southeastern Africa.• Founded around A.D. 700.• Great trading center: Zimbabwe supplied gold,
copper, ivory to East African coast.• Zimbabwe Kings, Mutota and Matope, built
the region’s biggest empire.• The Great Zimbabwe: capitol of the kingdom.